Awake and Alive
by BJXCBFOREVER
Summary: Mike thought he understood everything going on at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, but, really, he has no idea. He never thought the animatronics might actually be capable of feelings, let alone have one of them actually…love him. Enough to turn him into one of them, perhaps? /Takes place in an AU where the children aren't in the suits and the animatronics are sentient.
1. Outside Your Door

**Awake and Alive**

 **I don't own Five Nights at Freddy's. Scott Cawthon does.**

 **Summary: Mike thought he understood everything going on at Freddy Fazbear** **'** **s Pizza, but, really, he has no idea. He never thought the animatronics might actually be capable of feelings, let alone have one of them actually** **…** **love him. Enough to turn him into one of them, perhaps?**

 **Notes: Takes place in an AU where the kids aren** **'** **t in the suits and the animatronics are just sentient robot** **…** **things**

…

After twelve nights of all this, of being hunted and treated like prey, one could easily get used to everything that went bump in the night. The fan's humming as the blades spun had become as comforting as the cold air - albeit a small amount - it offered; the buzz of the lights having the same effect. Every thud of metallic feet no longer bothered him as much as it did on his first night, rather it just sent adrenaline pumping through his veins. So far, the most comforting noise, he thought, was the sound of the doors shutting. It made him aware of how he'd outwitted those damn things he was hired to watch over; made him know that he wouldn't be getting stuffed into a suit tonight at all. Or maybe the fan was the most comforting, weirdly enough. It made him aware of how alive he was; how he was still around to listen to it.

It was on night seven, the night where he first tampered with the animatronics' AIs ( _without_ getting caught, mind you), that he decided he could finally bring other essentials to work. Before, there were only the clothes on his back, a heart full of determination to live and get paid and a cup to pee in (hey, a guy's gotta piss, right?). Nowadays, he had taken to bringing packets of crisps, a small bottle of Coke or even a cigarette or two to work. A couple of times, he'd theorised 'accidentally dropping' his cigarette, which would 'accidentally' burn the place down. It was a good plan and one he could pull off easily, if it came down to it. It was better than getting stuffed into a suit like that poor soul who'd left him those messages.

Mike Schmidt dug his hand into the bag of gummies he'd brought with him tonight, plucking a cola bottle and popping it into his mouth as he checked the monitor. He'd already smoked his cigarette for the night and had forced himself not to smoke the other, for he'd promised his mother he'd try and quit. She worried about him a lot and he didn't like worrying her. He hadn't told her about what this job would involve him doing, simply said he'd gotten a job at that pizza place around the corner. She'd been delighted; she thought the animatronic crew was simply adorable. _Yeah,_ he thought bitterly as he stared at Bonnie, who stood in the backstage area, _freaking adorable alright._ Nevertheless, he'd managed to get his hands on some vintage Freddy Fazbear's Pizza merchandise for her, including plates, paper hats, plush dolls, figurines and the odd cup or two. She adored them; the dolls were already sitting at the end of her bed and the figurines were on her bedside table. Mike gave a smirk at her innocence. Ever since she'd fallen ill, she'd been more accepting, passive and enthusiastic over the little things. A pizzeria she'd once visited with his father was the last thing he'd expected her to remember, given she often couldn't find the slippers on her own feet, but it was right there in her memory. When he came home, she'd ask him how the gang were. She'd tell him the things she liked about each of them; told him so often he remembered each one. She liked Chica's beak, Freddy's hat, Foxy's tufts of fur and Bonnie's ears.

He didn't like anything on any of them, personally.

Honestly, he'd always thought they were creepy. Not just because he knew what others didn't, but they just…stared. Those creepy eyes and those creepy - what? - smiles. The freaking things were the objects of his nightmares - literally. Maybe once, when he was a kid, he actually liked them. Now? Really hated them. Mike picked out a gummy ring and went to eat it, then paused. Chica was gone from the camera feed. Far too casually, he reached over and pressed the button for his light. There was a buzz as the light flickered out in the hall, illuminating the face of the wide-eyed and open-mouthed chicken at Mike's window. He punched the door button and his metal shield came flying down, keeping that thing from getting to him. Mike narrowed his eyes at it. He didn't know why, but Chica had become especially restless in getting to him the past few nights. Even setting her AI lower than normal didn't seem to do anything. She'd get there sooner or later. The only other animatronic that did that was Freddy.

Mike checked for Bonnie and Foxy, then clicked the light on his right again. Chica was still there, but that was fine. He had enough power, he was sure, so she could stay there all she liked. He finally popped the gummy ring into his mouth and chewed it slowly as he stared at the chicken before the light went out and hid her face from view. Damn thing had been hanging out here more often too. Before, she'd be gone rather quickly - he'd give it a minute at most - but now…geez. She hung around for quite some time. What was her problem? Oh, right. Unable to catch him. She was probably pissed off or something. If she even could. They were just robots, after all.

Mike didn't fully understand the whole 'they think you're an endoskeleton' thing, personally. Where would that ever pop up in their programming? Was it an intentional choice on the creator's part? Was anyone that sick in the head? That guy on the phone had tried his best to explain it, but Mike still found it a little…hard to believe. They were just there to entertain kids, nothing else. That's all they wanted to do, right? What gripe did they have with him? He was _protecting them,_ damn it! Not that they needed it.

Mike checked the lights again, then released a breath when he noticed Chica was gone. He brought the door back up and took a quick glance at the clock. Three am. Fifty percent. He could make it. His brown hair was sticking to his forehead, so he removed his security guard cap and ran a quick hand through his hair, making it stick up at odd angles, before firmly shoving his cap back down onto it. The fan really didn't so much for cold air, but that was fine. Strangely, the warm air kept him in 'the zone'.

Freddy was gone from the stage now, making Mike frown considerably. _Finally on the move, huh, big guy? Took your time._ Mike checked the cameras, spotting the empty Pirate Cove. "Nope." He muttered as he punched the door button on his left. Seconds later, a banging sounded out against the door, "Piss off, Foxy. I don't want any." He called dryly. Up came the door once the banging had stopped. Flicking through the cameras, he checked the rest of the animatronics' places. Bonnie was down the hall, Chica was in the restroom, Freddy seemed to be in the dining area. He was easy to miss, but Mike was used to it.

Time went by rather slowly as he sat there, continuously checking lights, shutting doors and glancing at the cameras; just as Phone Guy had taught him. That guy was in the back of Mike's mind so often it hurt; he'd even cried over him once after ending his shift. Mike just prayed the guy had gotten a decent funeral. A burial, at the very least.

Mike chewed his gummies slowly. After twelve nights surviving the terrors that were the quartet of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, Mike was considered some sort of expert. The other employees - some of which had had to fill in whenever a night guard 'resigned', if even for a bit - would pat him on the back and congratulate him on his work. The boss seemed particularly pleased. Probably just happy he didn't have to clean up the bodies anymore. Bastard.

Yes, an expert Mike was. But even experts can make rookie mistakes.

Mike had checked where everyone was. He knew - he _knew._ It was just a mistake. He'd checked the left hallway, but not the right, then he'd put up his monitor to check the cameras. It was when he was checking Pirate Cove that he realised what he'd done, but by then it was too late. Mike's heart stopped, his eyes widened so much they hurt and his body covered itself in sweat.

Footsteps. Footsteps behind him.

Everything felt like it was going in slow motion. Reflexes alone made him put the monitor down and begin to turn his head. Freddy met him there, screeching in his face and shaking; his eyes as equally demonic as his scream. Mike screamed back, out of fear and not whatever Freddy was doing it for, and strong hands clamped down on Mike's biceps. The monitor clattered to the floor, along with Mike's forgotten bag of gummies, and Mike was suddenly lifted from his seat. Freddy's hands had a vice grip on Mike's arms as the man was carried out of the office. Mike fought back, of course. He kicked and screamed and attempted to punch at Freddy's belly, "FREDDY!" He screamed. Hell, if these things were alive like some people thought, reasoning with them seemed almost logical, "PLEASE! PLEASE, FREDDY, STOP! YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THIS! FREDDY! _FREDDY!"_

With enough punching and kicking, Mike managed to squeeze out of Freddy's grasp just as the bear was walking down the hall. He landed on his feet and immediately bolted, bypassing the bear and rushing toward the office to get inside. He sprinted through the doorway, only to almost crash into Chica, who seemed to almost grin at him as she shrieked at him. He screamed again, getting louder as hands grabbed his biceps again and he was hoisted up into the air and over a brown shoulder. Mike immediately began his kicking and screaming again, pushing at Freddy's shoulder and kicked him the best he could. "CHICA! CHICA! FREDDY, STOP! PLEASE! FREDDY, I'M BEGGING YOU!"

Freddy made no move to release him, rather continued his route down the west hallway. Mike didn't stop moving either, fighting against the grip Freddy had on him. His limbs were a flurry as he fought, but Freddy had tightened his hold. "FREDDY! GET OFF! GET THE _FUCK_ OFF ME, YOU _BASTARD!"_

As Freddy continued down the corridor, Mike became aware of the shadow on the wall and immediately realised what it was. After all, how could he miss those ears? As Freddy passed his band mate, Mike reached out, "BONNIE! BONNIE, PLEASE! TELL HIM TO GET OFF!" (Hey, there could've been a _chance…_ ) "BONNIE! BONNIE, PLEASE!" He grabbed Bonnie's shoulder and held on as tightly as he could. Freddy was very momentarily halted but prevailed, and Mike's hand slipped from Bonnie's shoulder, doing nothing more than turning the rabbit animatronic slightly. "BONNIE! BONNIE!"

It was when Bonnie turned to look at him properly and actually _watched_ as Freddy carried him off that Mike truly realised he was alone in this. The fact made his heart squeeze painfully and tears began flowing out of his eyes until he was bawling and sobbing like a baby at midnight. It was far too early for a lucky escape by six am too.

It was truly over.

Mike was carried all the way to the backstage area. Along the way, as they passed Pirate Cove, Mike had managed to grab hold of the curtain and beg for Foxy to stop Freddy, but the fox simply poked his head out and watched; his eye patch even flicking up to get a better view of poor Mike's demise. Tears were rivers down Mike's face as he was carried into the room marked EMPLOYEES ONLY. Heads of the animatronics were on all the shelves and, as Mike caught sight of a Freddy Fazbear head, he wondered which one Phone Guy had been put into. Did the robots even do that? Tear off someone's head instead of stuffing them into a suit? Did they know how? He didn't doubt they could.

Everything next was almost entirely a blur. He was aware that Freddy never once let go of him the entirety of collecting Mike's coffin and placing it on the table. He must've removed the head beforehand because it was already gone by the time Freddy was finally moving him off of his shoulder. Mike was held in front of the face of Freddy Fazbear, who stared at him with eyes that held a certain smugness. The game of cat and mouse was over; the cat had caught its mouse. Mike stared at him, tears cold on his face and he looked him straight in the eyes. They were, no doubt, the last thing Phone Guy saw too. "You _bastard…_ "

Freddy made no response, only lifted Mike a little higher. Mike didn't have to look to know Freddy was holding him above his grave, so he instead shut his eyes as new tears flowed forth, "…Mom…"

Then Freddy suddenly shoved him downwards.

Pain. Pain was everywhere. It shot through Mike's whole body, through his nerves and his bones and his veins and his organs and every part of him was in pain. It burned - oh, _hell,_ did it burn. It hurt. It hurt so much that he was screaming and sobbing the second it started. He distantly felt the suit become wet with, what he imagined to be, an array of different liquids; all from different places. The smell was horrid, but it was easily ignored under the burning and stinging pain. His grave couldn't even be coloured normal anymore; it had to be red by now. Deep red. Red like Foxy, maybe. He did like Foxy; when he was a kid.

Somewhere in the midst of it all, he became distantly aware that Freddy had actually released him ages ago and was simply standing there watching now. Sick, twisted… _thing!_ Mike was sent in to a frenzy of twitching, twisting; a fit of shaking limbs. Perhaps it was a subconscious battle against his binds, perhaps it was an attempt to wring Freddy Fazbear's neck or perhaps it was simply the basic response of someone who was losing a lot of blood very quickly. Someone who, if not already gone, was going to die. Either way, Mike couldn't stop; his legs kicked like he was running and his arms shook and flailed around.

It was only when the flailing forced his head back that he caught the sight of his own reflection in Freddy's eyes. The bear hadn't stopped watching him the entire time. Was he really alive? Was he really getting a sick satisfaction out of this? Really? That was disgusting.

It felt like hours. It must've been hours; it must've been, he swore. His movements slowly came to a halt, the distant rattling of animatronic parts finally ceasing. He was stuck then, stuck leaning forward; slumped over like that golden bear he'd seen before. Mike's vision became almost completely obscured as Freddy placed a head over the night guard's. Mike could just barely see out of the eye holes, and what he saw was a very satisfied-looking Freddy Fazbear before blacking out entirely.

…

The burning and the stinging had stopped, it seemed, but now everything was heavy and numb. Mike's eyes flickered several times before, finally, he could see. He blinked a few times, groaning lowly for a moment. The night guard sat up properly. It didn't hurt anymore. Actually, no pain was felt at all. Well, that confirmed it, didn't it? It was a dream. Yup. It was all a dream; maybe even a hallucination. Either way, it wasn't real. He hadn't been caught; it was fake. Mike yawned, "Last time I fall asleep at my post…Damn. They didn't even _try_ to get me…" Giving him a break, were they? How sweet. He reached up to wipe his eye, to wipe away tiredness and sleep, and paused. He was certainly doing this right; his arm was at the right angle, at the right height, so…why couldn't he feel it? He was rubbing, but no contact was being made. _Something_ was touching his fingers. It didn't feel like skin, but then…it didn't feel like anything in particular. It just felt… _there._ Mike opened his eyes and held the hand out in front of him and he froze all over again, "W…What the _hell…?"_ He muttered in disbelief, "…F-Freddy…?"

Indeed, before him was the right hand of Freddy Fazbear. He would've screamed and bolted if he hadn't realised it before. If he was seeing Freddy's hand…why was he looking at it from his angle? Like…like it was his own…

Mike gulped and reached for his neck. This couldn't be. T-This was still just a dream, then. It had to be. His hand reached his neck, albeit slowly, and felt around. He still couldn't feel anything for what it really was, but he could still find the outlines. Mike's eyes widened. No…no…no…

A bow tie. A bow tie was there. In the same place as Freddy's would be.

Panic rose up in Mike's chest as the strongest possibility came to mind, but he refused to let it surface completely to the top until he did one final test. Slowly, he reached up and touched the side of the thing on his head. Ears. He had bear ears. Taking hold of one in his left hand was a reflex, but the scream that erupted from his mouth was purely intentional. Mike pushed himself up from the table suddenly, immediately falling over to the floor. It was a rapid cycle of standing up, falling over, standing up, then falling right back over as Mike screamed and clutched at his new head; the old one firmly crushed to pieces. At least, he imagined it to be. There was some sort of rattling in there.

If Mike had still had human tear ducts, he would've started bawling all over again, but he couldn't. In that case, he settled for some simple blubbering as he firmly collapsed against the door, Freddy's knees drawn to his chest and head tilted back as he blubbered over his new fate. This couldn't be happening. It simply couldn't.

…He'd been caught. For once in all his twelve nights, he'd been caught. Oh, don't get him wrong, he'd had his fair share of close calls. He'd run out of power on his first, fifth and seventh nights and had come very close to becoming another one of Freddy's victims before the chime of six am rang out, leaving a relieved Mike and a no doubt pissed off Freddy Fazbear. Bonnie had almost caught him on night three and Chica had come close on night ten. Foxy had done pretty well for himself; he'd almost managed to succeed on at least three nights in a row.

He felt…he didn't know. Scared. Hopeless. Useless. Sad. Angry. Enraged. Confused. He just didn't know. All he knew was that he was no longer the expert of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza. Was he even that from the beginning? No, that title was better suited to the guy on the phone. He'd saved Mike's life, for the most part, and Mike could confess he'd listened to those recordings more than once. There was a certain comfort to hearing a human's voice when surrounded by killer robots, even if it was recorded prior to the man's death. In fact, he had the right mind to go and find that phone and get those recordings and -

"Do you think he's awake yet?"

Mike froze immediately. He was unsure at first if it was even real - it wouldn't be the first time he'd heard a voice in this building.

"Aye, lass, give the landlubber some time. Lad's probably still snoozin' back thar."

 _Pirate talk…?_ Mike thought confusedly as he tilted his head to listen better. There was no denying it; the voices were there. Right on the other side of the door.

"Should we go and look?" came the girl's voice again.

"Aw, calm down a little." This one was new. It was male, though not as deep as you'd expect a man's voice to be. "I know you're excited, but give it time! We scared him a lot last night; he's probably a little more than hesitant to come and see us."

"Aww…you think he's mad at us?"

"I would be."

"The rabbit's right, lass."

 _Rabbit?!_

"Oh…alright…"

"Can't believe we caught him, though, right?"

" _I_ caught him." came a fourth voice and this one was much deeper than the others. It startled Mike a little.

"Aye, we know, we know…"

"I helped!"

"You just scared him a little, Chica." _CHICA?!_ "Gave me time to catch up."

"Peh. Cause you're getting old, that's why."

"I'm not getting old."

"You're getting old, Freddy."

 _F-FREDDY?!_

"I'm not. Stop saying that."

"…Geezer."

Mike heard a sigh, then the less masculine voice arose again, "Well, no matter how old Freddy is - and I'm not saying you're old, don't give me that look! - we can all agree he did a good job last night. We _all_ did! Even you, Foxy!" _OH, GOD - FOXY?!_ "Isn't that right?"

"Arrr."

"Great answer. Chica?"

"Sure, sure. Just saying, you know -"

" _Freddy?_ "

"Yeah, alright. You all did good. Well done. I just did better."

"I swear, Freddy…"

"What? Oh, come on, Bonnie," _BONNIE?!_ "admit it! I did great!"

"Oh, God…" Mike muttered into the confined space of his new head, "…They're _talking…_ "

"Well, regardless, we're a team. And teams, y'know…they congratulate each other. So, hug and be happy, guys, we caught the endoskeleton!"

"Oh, God…oh, damn…t-they really…he was…" Mike was muttering to himself, "he was _right…_ Phone Guy…was really freaking _right…_ "

"Tha' scurvy dog was no easy task, eh, Bonnie?"

"No. But that's fine. We got him all dressed up now, so it's fine! The kids didn't see him, so that's good. Don't want him breaking rules!"

"Yeah. Kids seeing naked endoskeletons - bad for business."

"T-They're talking…" Mike muttered again, "They're talking…the robots are talking…l-like… _people…_ like _friends…_ "

"Hey, you hear that?"

Mike's heart - uh, whatever had stopped - was firmly frozen.

"Hear what, lad?"

"Thought I heard a noise from inside."

"You mean he's awake?!"

"Chica, calm -"

"Oh, Mister Endoskeleton! It's okay! It's us! We're your buddies! It's okay, you can come out now!"

"I'm dreaming…" Mike whispered to himself, clamping his hands over the places where his human ears should be, "I have to be…they don't talk…not like this…some simple phrases to the kids here and there, but…not like this…not to _each other…_ "

"Endoskeleton! C'mon out!"

"Chica! Relax! I told you: he's probably scared!"

"Bonnie's right, Chica. Leave it be."

"I'm dreaming…I have to be…" Mike held himself firmer, "They…don't… _talk…_ "

"You've got to be gentler with it."

"The rabbit's still right, lass. Yer probably scarin' the lad more than yer wooing him."

 _WOOING ME?!_ "It…It's a prank…y-yeah…" He was resorting to his very last options by now, but it was worth it if he never had to face the terrifying truth. It was a prank. All of this was a prank. The suit stuffing, the talking, the 'wooing' - all a prank. His colleagues knew how much this place frightened him and how much he wanted to leave, so they were playing a cruel prank. A seriously cruel and sick prank. He'd go out there and they'd start laughing at him. They see and smell and know that he'd pissed himself the night before and they'd all laugh at him. Honestly, that'd be better than this. At least they could help him out of the suit. It really was very horrible.

Gulping, Mike climbed to his feet slowly and turned to face the door. Here it goes. Now or never. Truth or false. Either way, Mike would know that what was happening here wasn't in his mind; he wasn't crazy. But his colleagues would be _so dead._ The night guard took hold of the door handle and opened the door. For what must've been the ten thousandth time that day (night? Evening? He wasn't sure anymore), Mike froze as the four animatronics turned to face him. They stood in a line - Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, Foxy - and all looked…different. Maybe it was the lighting, maybe it was the context or maybe it was the smiles, but they all looked…more pleasant than usual. Mike stared with wide eyes at them all as they regarded him pleasantly, then Chica suddenly turned back to Bonnie, "Ha! See! My way worked! He came out!"

"Now, hold on a second." Freddy interjected, waving a hand to call Chica off, "He came out after Bonnie and Foxy (but mostly Bonnie) told you to relax. He was obviously listening to _them_ (but mostly Bonnie) and not _you._ "

"No! He must've been listening to me!"

"And why's that?"

"You know why, Freddy! You're just jealous!" Chica jabbed an accusing finger at the bear, who looked offended.

"Jealous?! Over what? Him? No. I don't shoot for guys like him."

"You shoot for guys like B -"

"Now, now, you're being rude!" Bonnie waved his hands at them, "Chica, you need to relax. Freddy! Stop being so darn aggressive with people. Sheesh."

"Not my fault."

"It kinda is, there, Fazbear."

Mike looked back and forth between all of them. Here they were, squabbling like siblings, and here he was, standing there like this was their dinnertime show. They weren't moving robotically at all; they moved as fluid as normal humans. He could see every little emotion in them; how offended Freddy was that Chica accused him of jealousy and how bored Foxy was with their arguing. He didn't know when the realisation had hit, but it had and it had hit hard.

This wasn't a prank. This was the real deal. There were no strings and no mirror tricks. This was real. The animatronics were really talking and really arguing and really conversing like they were all best buddies ( _were they?_ ).

With no such warning, Mike let out another scream that cut through whatever Chica was saying. The scream was so sudden that Foxy and Chica both jumped, while Freddy and Bonnie simply looked over at him. All looked surprised, particularly when Mike slammed the door in their faces, effectively locking them out. The four blinked in unison, then Freddy frowned and looked to Chica, "Yeah, see? He ran off again. There you go."

"Oh, Freddy…" Bonnie muttered.

"Quiet, Fazbear!" Chica yelped, still rather shocked at Mike's actions, "He's just shy, that's all! I think it's cute!"

"You think everything's cute. Even him."

" _Freddy!_ " Bonnie exclaimed, hands on hips.

"Aye…" Foxy shook his head and bypassed them all, walking down the corridor.

"Hey. Where're you going, Foxy?" Freddy called.

Foxy waved his hook like a white flag, "Yer squabblin's givin' me a headache. I'm venturin' back to me cove…"

"We can't get headaches."

"Well, then it be a darn miracle…"

Mike heard Freddy huff, "Come on, gang. Let's head back to the stage. The humans will be here soon." He heard the thudding of Freddy's footsteps as the bear walked away from the door.

"Right you are, Freddy!" Bonnie chirped, then turned to the door, "Don't you worry none, Endoskeleton! You come on out when you're comfortable! C'mon, Chica." Bonnie bounded over to Freddy's side, where he muttered, "Have a word with you while we go…" Freddy gave a huff, but otherwise didn't complain.

"Alrighty!" came Chica's voice. Mike trembled as the shock settled in, then he yelped when he heard Chica's voice right next to his ear. By the sound of it, she'd leaned down to speak, "Bonnie's right, Endoskeleton. You don't have to worry here at our home! We'll take good care of you and I'll make sure you're very, _very_ happy. Okay?" Mike gave no response, but Chica seemed satisfied all the same as she turned and left. Mike waited until he was absolutely sure she was gone, then he curled up into a ball the best he could.

This was real. All of it. It was no dream, no hallucination, no prank. This was legitimate; this was really happening. The robots were talking and treating him like a friend, even though they'd killed him only a short time beforehand. Phone Guy had been right; they really didn't know any better. They really thought he was a naked endoskeleton was being a little bit too cocky with the rule-breaking. Even Freddy, who had watched him die and had seemed to smile as he did so.

Mike didn't know how to feel, how to react or what to do. All he knew was this one thing, "I am _never_ leaving this room…"


	2. The Cuddle Room

**Awake and Alive**

 **I don** **'** **t own Five Nights at Freddy** **'** **s. Scott Cawthon does.**

 **Summary: Mike thought he understood everything going on at Freddy Fazbear** **'** **s Pizza, but, really, he has no idea. He never thought the animatronics might actually be capable of feelings, let alone have one of them actually** **…** **love him. Enough to turn him into one of them, perhaps?**

 **Notes: Takes place in an AU where the kids aren** **'** **t in the suits and the animatronics are just sentient robot** **…** **things**

 **Thank you to all those who favourited and alerted, and a special thanks to those who reviewed! I'm glad you're enjoying the story thus far!**

…

The backstage room didn't have a clock, making it exceedingly difficult to tell what the time was. At least, he didn't think it had a clock. There was no obvious one and he was still too shocked and too scared to look around all the shelves of heads to find one. For now, he was contented to wait until something happened - preferably something that _wasn't_ animatronic-related.

Too much had happened in however much time he'd been there. He'd been murdered, stuffed into a bear suit and met the very… _things_ that had hunted him down like an animal and killed him. Oh, and he'd been resurrected. Was he resurrected? He couldn't remember. He didn't understand. He'd seen movies where characters died and came back as vengeful spirits. Watched them almost every night, straight after putting his mother to bed. He hadn't been able to since he took up the job as the pizzeria's night guard. In any case, was his own resurrection like those ones? Was there some kind of magic involved? Did he have to complete some task to be able to go to 'the beyond'? Was it, perhaps, kill - destroy the animatronics? He hoped so. He could certainly manage doing so. Then again, with the way Freddy could just pick him up like that, with no effort at all, it would probably be pretty tricky to subdue the bear alone. With the others involved, it would be even harder.

Everything he'd heard about this place - the missing children, the Bite of '87, all the dead people - somehow didn't measure up to actually knowing the animatronics were, he didn't know, _alive._ They'd talked and walked and acted like all were best buddies. It was just wrong.

Mike hugged his knees tighter. He hadn't moved from that position against the door all day. He'd considered going out when he heard people, to show them what the animatronics did to him and how he wanted a raise, if anything. But then he thought against it when he heard the children cheering as the animatronics sang. How would the children react if another Freddy - one covered in blood and piss and whatever else had come out of him last night - were to suddenly come out of the room by the stage, shouting that these things were monsters and should be destroyed immediately? They would be terrified, and he couldn't do that to them. No matter what he knew, Freddy Fazbear's Pizza was a safe haven for the children that came there. At least, it was in their minds, and he intended to keep it that way.

He'd never heard the animatronics sing before. Mike obviously always came at night, so he'd never seen the animatronics perform. Some of his fellow employees told him of a few things when he asked and some could be heard humming the songs they heard everyday. The songs were childish and silly and about things only toddlers would like, but Mike supposed they were alright. Considering this place was meant for children, they seemed perfect.

Now, there was no sound outside. The kids were gone, he couldn't hear his colleagues nor any footsteps. He was alone and, somewhere out there, were his murderers.

He honestly didn't know what time it was. The restaurant was obviously closed, but did that mean it was still night or early morning? Had his replacement already come and gone? He didn't know. None of the band had tried to get in, so - if the temporary night guard had already accomplished a shift - that meant they'd survived. Good. He was lonely, but not so much that he'd wish for another man's death. That was just wrong.

Mike stared at his new feet, just as he'd been doing all day. A Freddy suit. If there was any character he hadn't wanted to be, it was Freddy. Freddy was, by far, his least favourite. Son of a bitch was the hardest to keep away. The heck was his problem, anyway? Hopefully, that new night guard wouldn't -

He paused. Wait. The new night guard. Why hadn't he thought of it before?! The night guard - a _person!_ Of course! If it was still night, like he was now hoping it was, he could get to the office and get the night guard to help him! He could tell him all that had happened and get his help!

Oh…but what if he thought he was just another Freddy? What then? He'd shut the door on him and the animatronics would be so confused on what he was doing…Oh, to hell with them! They would probably think he was trying to join in with their game. As for the night guard…well, if talking could shake Mike up so much, then the night guard would realise it was him. Besides, he'd heard his voice before. He'd recognise him, he was sure. It'd be fine.

Mike struggled to get to his feet. At first, he tried to climb up using the wall, but had slipped and fallen on Freddy's backside as he did. Eventually, after several attempts at this, he managed to get onto his knees and crawl to the table to use to get up. He ignored the spare Bonnie head on the table and got to his feet. Mike didn't bother brushing himself off after that. He simply turned to the door and took hold of the handle. For a moment, he paused to listen for the animatronics. When he heard no footsteps, Mike slowly opened the door, careful not to make it creak, then paused again.

No voices nor footsteps. They hadn't noticed.

Mike poked his head out for a look, almost getting it stuck in the doorway when he forgot about how big his head now was. It was still dark in the room, but he could see just fine, it seemed. Mike edged the door open and side-stepped out, shutting the door behind him in case anyone noticed he was gone and went to find him. Mike stood there, unmoving and temporarily unsure of what to do now. He didn't dare look at the stage in case they were there and simply hadn't noticed him, nor did he want to notice _their_ absence and feel another rush of panic. He took a glance at Pirate's Cove. The curtain was closed. Foxy hadn't noticed.

Mike continued to stand there for a moment…then he bolted.

He ran right across the dining area, almost tripping over a couple of chairs on his way, and right into the west corridor. He didn't bothered looking back to check if the animatronics had noticed - he just _ran._ A couple of times, he stumbled on his new feet, but managed to pick up enough speed to get away from danger in record time. Soon enough, he was down the west corridor and spinning into the doorway of the office, "Night guard, listen, I'm not -" He froze.

No night guard. The tablet was sitting on the chair, the fan's blades were still spinning and the light was still buzzing. Mike's shoulders fell. It must've turned into early morning, then. He was aware that people actually didn't start coming in until after he left and the animatronics would simply return to the stage once they failed at their 'game'. So…what then? Where were the animatronics? Had they been on stage and he simply hadn't noticed? Were they somewhere in the restaurant? Had they noticed him gone and were on their way?

Only one way to find out.

Mike quickly got into the office and grabbed the tablet, beginning to flick through the cameras. He had to find them now. They had to be around here somewhere. He guessed Foxy was still in the cove, since the curtains were still shut, so he wouldn't be a problem. But what about -

A gasp made him jump so hard he dropped the tablet. He turned, only to see Chica looking at him from the window. Before he could think of running away, she rushed to the doorway and stepped in, "Endoskeleton! You came back out!"

Mike panicked and panicked hard. He ripped the fan from the desk, made sure the blades were still spinning, and held it out like a knife, "You stay the hell away from me!" He shouted without thinking about who he was speaking to.

Chica's smile dropped and she tilted her head, "Endoskeleton? What's wrong?"

"Bit feisty, this one."

Mike screamed and jumped again, his arms flailing, this time stumbling away to the corner of the room. Freddy Fazbear had slipped in unnoticed, just like the night he'd killed Mike, only this time he'd simply crossed his arms. Freddy and Chica watched him as he curled up into his ball, the fan still held out to protect him, although he'd accidentally ripped it out of its socket so the blades no longer spun.

Before Freddy or Chica could speak, Bonnie poked his head into the doorway, guitar slung over his shoulder. The tips of his ears bended, then stretched as he prepared himself to listen, "What's going on? I heard a scream!" Freddy jerked a thumb in Mike's direction and Bonnie looked over, then immediately smiled, his ears bouncing again, "Endoskeleton! Hi! Boy, I must seem rude now, huh? Oh! Wait, hang on!" He turned and leaned out of the doorway again, "FOXY!"

Seconds later, clanking was heard and Foxy almost crashed into Bonnie as he finished his usual sprint down the hall, "Aye, Bonnie! What be all the ruckus about?" Bonnie gestured to Mike and Foxy's eye patch flicked up, "Ahoy, me matey! Seems our new crew member finally decided t' join us on deck!" He walked forward on his old legs, waving his hook and offering Mike his one hand. Whether he wanted to help Mike up or he wanted a handshake was unknown, as Mike held up the fan as a shield from Foxy's touch, "No need to be so jittery, lad! Ol' Foxy wouldn't hurt a fly!"

"Aw," Bonnie muttered gently as he wandered over. Mike's attention immediately went to him; he was beginning to hyperventilate now, "it's okay, Endoskeleton. We won't hurt you - promise! We're _nice_ people."

Mike stared at him, unsure of what to make of this. For one, he wanted to scoff at what Bonnie had said, but nothing would come out. Besides, they honestly weren't aware he was human, so…they actually _did_ think they were nice people. They thought they had just helped a fellow entertainer get dressed.

God…what a load of freaking _idiots._

"You've had a pretty rough night, huh? It's alright now. We'll help you out - that's what friends are for, after all! Now, just in case you don't know (and some don't, so it's okay)…" Bonnie started, then gestured to himself, "I'm Bonnie the Bunny." He took a moment to let Mike process that, then he gestured to Foxy, "This is Foxy the Pirate Fox."

"Ahoy, me matey!" Foxy repeated, waving his hook again.

"This is Freddy Fazbear." Freddy offered a little wave, regarding Mike with a half-lidded stare, "And this is Chi -"

"Chica the Chicken!" Chica burst out with suddenly, taking a couple of steps forward and smiling widely at Mike. The four males stared at her for a moment, then she looked at her fellow robots, "…What?!"

Bonnie turned back to Mike, who flinched and held his fan closer to himself, "Chica the Chicken." He finished awkwardly.

"…I…" Mike managed to get out, "I…I k-k-know…"

"Oh, good! Not everyone does, you know, and it makes everything so awkward!" Bonnie mused, a finger to his chin in thought, then he suddenly leaned down to Mike, who shielded himself some more. Bonnie's eyes practically sparkled, "So! What's your name, friend? I'm sure it isn't Endoskeleton!…Oh! But - if it is - no offence! It's a lovely name!"

"…Mike…"

"Mike…?"

"…Schmidt."

Bonnie's smile dropped and he leaned back, his finger back on his chin. His ears flexed themselves in his confusion, "'Mike Schmidt'? Well, that doesn't have alliteration at all!"

"Schmidt has an m in it." Freddy pointed out.

Bonnie's ears pointed skyward in realisation, then he turned to Freddy with a smile, "That it does! Great! Oh, um…" He turned back to Mike, "Are you sure it isn't 'Mike _the_ Schmidt'?" Mike nodded, and Bonnie appeared confused again, "Oh…guess you're like Freddy, then, huh?!"

Mike stared at Bonnie with wide eyes, still shocked and unsure about this situation. "…You're talking…"

The purple bunny blinked, then chuckled, "Of course I'm talking! What else would I be doing? Oh…are you hard of hearing? I know sign language! Want me to do some sign language?"

"Uh…"

"He doesn't need sign language!" Chica exclaimed, "He's perfect!" Mike's eyes flashed to her and she offered him an overly-cheerful grin. He didn't know what to make of it.

"I think th' lad's still a bit spooked." Foxy pointed out.

"Aww, don't worry, Mike Schmidt." Bonnie said again with the most gentle tone he could, "We're all buddies here! No need to be scared…Here, lemme just…" He reached forward to take the fan from Mike, but Mike's grip was too tight. Bonnie relented and let him have it. "Alright, that's fine. No worries."

"W-What…Where's the night guard?" Mike asked.

Bonnie paused, then looked horribly confused, "Night guard? What night guard? We don't have a night guard."

"Uh…I mean…are there any other endoskeletons…?"

Bonnie gave a little bounce, "As a matter of fact, one was here only minutes ago!" Mike mentally cursed, _Fuck. Just missed him…_ "We tried to tell him to get dressed, but he wouldn't open the doors for us. So rude…Then again, you did that too!" He pointed at Mike, then waved a hand, "But, don't worry, Mike Schmidt! We forgive you!"

Mike gave a slow nod. They were all so friendly toward him, it was like they _hadn't_ tried to kill him previously. In fact, it almost made him forget. Almost.

Freddy himself was watching Chica. She continuously bounced on her heels, her grin never falling. The bear looked to Mike, who was still balled up in the corner of the room, then looked back to Chica. Honestly, he didn't see whatever she did. To him, Mike Schmidt was an odd little thing who was far too jumpy, but whatever. She didn't understand his affections either, so why bother try to learn the reason for hers? "Foxy," Freddy spoke up, catching the fox's attention, "don't you have…stuff to do?"

"Eh?" Foxy tilted his head, "What d' ye mean, lad?"

"You know…stuff."

"Stuff?"

"Yeah. Make sure the restaurant's all clean. That sort of…stuff."

"That be the janitor's job, lad."

"Well, we owe them." He cocked his head to the doorway, "Go on. Someone with your leg power would be good at it."

Foxy tilted his head again, unsure of what Freddy meant, then the bear glanced in Chica's direction, in Mike's, then back to Foxy's. Foxy looked to the two, then held up his hook in surrender, "Avast - o' course! Thank yer gears f' remindin' me, Fazbear, almost forgot!" Freddy nodded as a welcome, then Foxy turned back to Mike, "Well, lad, ol' Foxy's got to be venturin' off to his…stuff. I'll be sailin' yer way later, best be warned! An' remember, lad, yer always welcome back at Cap'n Foxy's Pirate Cove!" Mike gave no response, so Foxy simply left them alone. He disappeared through the doorway without another word.

Freddy then turned to Bonnie, who was fiddling with his fingers, "Foxy's got stuff to do? What stuff?"

"I dunno." Freddy shrugged like the conversation never happened, "Pirate stuff. You know."

"Oh…we should go help him!"

"Bonnie." The bunny turned to the bear, pausing his attempt at helping the fox, only for Freddy to cock his head toward the doorway.

Bonnie glanced over in that direction, then jumped, his ears shooting up again, "Oh! Of course!" His ears settled themselves as he turned back to Mike, "Well, Mike Schmidt, me and Freddy gotta get going! Don't worry - Chica doesn't bite none!" He offered a smile, then wriggled his fingers in a wave, "Bye, bye, friend!" With that, Freddy followed Bonnie out and the two disappeared down the hall. Mike couldn't hear them very well from there, but he heard just enough to know they were talking about him. Watching them go, it slowly dawned on him that he was now alone with one of them. Mike slowly turned his head back to Chica, who looked like she was going to explode with joy. He didn't know what was up with her, but she seemed the most excited to have him on the outside. After all, she'd practically pushed down the door when he was in the backstage room. Heavens knows why she was so happy to have him around. Then again…what had Foxy said about 'wooing' him…?

"Well, Mike Schmidt!" Chica exclaimed, "Just me and you now! So, what d'ya wanna do? Wanna head to the kitchen? Or we could play games! Do you like games, Mike Schmidt?" Mike didn't reply, only moved away from her even more, so her smile dropped, "Hey, what's the matter? I don't bite. Really!" She wrung her hands a little, "I…guess I've been coming off a little strongly…Really, Mike Schmidt, I'm just really happy you're here! I mean…I've been waiting a long time, y'know? I just…you know?"

Mike stared at her, unsure of what to do or say. Know? Know what? What had she been waiting for? He had no idea. It…didn't have anything to do with 'wooing' him, did it? Foxy was just kidding about that, right?

"Hey, I know!" Chica suddenly exclaimed, making Mike jump, "I'll give you a tour of the place! Yeah! You've always been hanging out in the office, I bet you've never seen the rest of the building, huh?"

Mike tensed immediately. He didn't want to be anywhere near these things, especially now, when he was trying to figure this all out. He opened his mouth, closed it, then said, "N-No, actually, I -"

"C'mon!" Chica reached forward and grabbed his right hand. Mike glanced down at her hand, tried to lift his left one to bring the fan down upon hers, but she was too quick and too strong. In absolutely no time at all, she dragged him up and pulled him outside the office, beginning to take off down the corridor. Mike gave a short scream as he was pulled along, but Chica either ignored it or didn't hear over her own voice, "This is the east hallway! I hang out down here - oh! But you knew that already, didn't you? You saw me all the time - at the window, remember?" She didn't wait for an answer, instead simply dragged him toward the restaurant's bathrooms to carry on the tour.

The tour was rather short itself so far; the restaurant was rather small and Chica didn't have much to say about each room she showed to him. Mike said next to nothing the entire time, only offering small grunts of acknowledgement each time she asked him a question. She hardly ever waited for answers anyway. Several times, Mike tried to slip away, but Chica's grip on his hand was strong. Come to think of it, she hadn't released his hand the entire time. Mike found the touch uncomfortable, but he had no choice but to tolerate it, even if he wanted her to release him and leave him alone. He wanted nothing to do with her, but she obviously wanted _everything_ to do with him.

As Chica finished showing Mike the stage, bringing him up to circle it for a better look, Mike moved toward the backstage room. If he could get inside and barricade the door, then maybe he would finally get some time away from them all and Chica would get the message. He didn't want to be her friend or anything else she may have had in mind. In fact, he wanted nothing to do with any of them. They had _killed him,_ for God's sake!

Mike was steps away from the door to the backstage room when Chica suddenly tugged on his hand, using her other to grab his arm and turn him away, "Oh, no, Mike Schmidt! We can't go in there!"

Mike looked to her, then finally managed to muster up his voice to speak, "…Uh…H-How come?"

"Freddy and Bonnie are having their time."

"…'Their time'…?"

"Uh-huh! Can't disturb their time!"

Mike stared at her blankly. He'd heard that phrase many times over his childhood, mainly because his mother made the mistake of picking teenaged babysitters. He had been forbidden from entering even his own bedroom because adults were having 'their time'. And if Chica was saying the same thing…Well…Bonnie and Freddy were adults, right…? Or…something like that…

Mike frowned confusedly and looked down to the area between his legs, then took a peek at Chica's. _But…they don't even have_ junk…! _So…how the hell are they…? And…_ why _are they…?!_ "Y-You mean…they're a… _thing…?_ "

Chica tilted her head, then realised his meaning, "Oh! Yeah! Didn't you know that, Mike Schmidt? You were messing with the cameras…"

 _Holy shit, they did this while I was WATCHING?!_

"I mean…I would've thought you'd noticed _something._ Bonnie and Freddy have their time before and after hours!"

"You mean…they come here to…?" Mike started out, suddenly feeling sick. He'd been sitting in there all day; probably where they…DID STUFF.

"Yup!" Chica looked to the door, "Sure hope they hurry it up in there…"

Mike felt absolutely horrified. First of all, Bonnie and Freddy were a _thing._ Second of all, they had 'time' together! They were ROBOTS and they had TIME TOGETHER. What…? Mike looked to the door again, suddenly realising something.

Now, don't get him wrong, he wasn't _hoping_ for anything, but…if they _were_ doing 'stuff', wouldn't he hear something? That room wasn't sound-proof, surely they'd make some sort of noise… "Chica…" (He couldn't believe he'd referred to her by name) "By…'their time'…what exactly do you mean…?"

"Mike Schmidt!" Chica gasped, playfully slapping his chest. He winced at it; not because it hurt, but because she'd touched him, "You can't ask _that!_ "

Mike frowned. Alright, this was getting confusing. He couldn't hear anything, so they couldn't _possibly -_ then again, they could turn off their voice boxes, right? Did they have voice boxes? They could talk just fine, so they had something in there. At the same time…these were made for a _children's restaurant._ What reason would the inventor have for giving them… _junk?_ That made no sense, unless the guy was really that sick. Mike glanced over his shoulder, then his frown deepened, "Hey…Chica?"

"Yes?"

"Let's go back to the office." He went to move on.

"The office?" Chica tugged him back, her brow furrowed, "Why, Mike Schmidt?"

"I…" He searched for an answer before realising he was still comically holding the fan, "…gotta put the fan back. Y'know. Before…people get here."

"Oh! Right! C'mon, then!" She took the lead once more, dragging him back to the office by his hand. As soon as they reached the doorway, Mike took the lead, which Chica gave a small squeal at. He ignored her and put down the fan in favour of picking up the tablet. Pressing one of Freddy's fingers to the square marked CAM 5, Mike narrowed his eyes, then ultimately paused.

It was a little difficult to tell in the darkness, but Bonnie and Freddy sat by the wall, their knees to their chests. They sat next to each other, knees touching. Bonnie's guitar was in his lap and Freddy's microphone was by his foot, his focus on the bunny beside him. With the thumb and index finger of his right hand, Freddy rubbed Bonnie's ear, making the appendage twitch lightly. Bonnie wasn't looking at him, though he began to lean against him.

Mike stared at the display in front of him. He couldn't freaking believe this. First of all, that the animatronics believed this was the height of romantic affection, and secondly…they could _feel_ romantic affection! They were _robots!_ Mike felt somewhat sick and pretty stupid as he looked at it. _Holy crap…_

"Whatcha watchin - _Mike Schmidt!_ "

The tablet was suddenly snatched away from him. Mike whirled around to face the chicken animatronic, "Hey!"

"That's really, really personal, Mike Schmidt!" Chica exclaimed, "How could you?!"

"They're just sitting there!" Mike retorted, "It's hardly anything R-rated!"

"They're…" Chica took a cautious glance at the door, then whispered, "… _cuddling…!"_

"Freaking - so?!"

" _So! So,_ that's really personal! If the kids saw this…" She shook her head, then looked to Mike, "You can't do that, Mike Schmidt, I'm sorry!"

Mike stared in disbelief. What was the big deal? Alright, he could understand Freddy and Bonnie wanted privacy, but what was with treating it so harshly? Why would kids care about a bunny and a bear having a cuddle? Mike looked her up and down, then paused. He'd given himself the answer earlier: they were built for a children's restaurant. Of course this would seem like a big deal. Kissing must be the most private thing in the world to them, then. And sex…sex was just non-existent. _Makes sense,_ Mike thought, _they don't even have junk._

Chica changed the camera without looking, then set the tablet down on the desk, "They…should be done soon…" Mike gave a grunt. "Then we can go in!"

The ex-security guard faltered, then looked to her, "W…What?"

"We can go in, Mike Schmidt." Chica smiled, "It's okay to be shy. I've never really done it either, but -"

"I…What?!" Mike took a step back.

Chica blinked, regarding him with confusion, "Mike Schmidt? What's wrong? I thought you'd be excited."

"I…"

"I mean, I don't see why you wouldn't be…You love me too, right?"

If he weren't already dead, Mike might've fainted on the spot. It was bad enough knowing the truth about Bonnie and Freddy, but…but what was Chica _saying?_ He stared at her in disbelief. Love her _too?_ The only way he could love her _too_ was if…Oh, God…

Foxy hadn't been kidding.

Mike's eyes would've widened if they were still in his head. No wonder Chica had been showing up at the office more often. No wonder she'd spent more time at the office's window. She was there to see him, and not just as an attempt at stuffing him into a suit. He'd thought she was just getting impatient with his escaping death all the time, not that she… _loved him._ Mike suddenly felt sick. One of these things actually _loved him._ That just…it wasn't possible. She was a robot, not a human being. Just a sack of wires, metal beams and whatever else these things were made from. _He_ was a real human being, with the blood and guts to prove it. This just…it was sick and wrong, even more so than a romance between two animatronics. And how was he supposed to deal with this now? What would happen to his previous plan of avoiding them? How could he carry that on when one of them _loved him?_

"Mike Schmidt? Are you okay? Did you know that I love you?"

 _Oh, God, don't say that._ "Chica, I don't you think you understand what you just said to me." He said quickly, apparently forgetting who he was speaking to.

Chica looked confused, "Of course I do! Bonnie loves Freddy and Freddy loves Bonnie! Even Foxy loves someone!" _Oh, God…_ "And I love you, Mike Schmidt! And you love me!"

"W-What…? I-I…"

"I mean, I know you do…" Chica suddenly looked bashful, "You always looked at me like that when I was at your window…and you always said hi to me…"

Mike's eyes would've widened even more if they could. Did she seriously take everything he did as _flirting?_ Those glares he sent at her - she took those as him giving her… _looks?!_ And saying hi, well…every time Mike came into work, he would tip his hat to each one and greet them. Chica was the first every time; Foxy was the last. It was meant as a sarcastic greeting if anything, but she obviously didn't take it that way. And almost every time Chica was at his window, he would exclaim a sarcastic "Hi, Chica!" before shutting the door in her face. It was either that or his classic glare.

Chica…honestly took those as signs of _affection?_

"Mike Schmidt?" Mike snapped out of his state of shock enough to look at her again. He felt even more sick doing so. "I…Are you okay?" She asked as she watched Mike put a hand on the desk to balance himself. This was just too much. Too much to handle. "Mike Schmidt, it's okay. You don't have to say anything - I already knew you did! If you're shy, then that's okay."

"I…I…"

"I mean, that's why we wanted you to get dressed so badly! You're not allowed to be _naked_ around here! Now that you're not breaking the rules, we can be together!" She smiled at him sweetly, like this was the best plan ever, "You look a little better all dressed up, anyway. Sorry we had to put you in a Freddy suit, by the way. I know he's not much of a looker. But, hey, if we get another costume, we can just take you out and put you in there!"

 _Oh, God…_ He couldn't imagine the mess that would make. Mike stared at her in disbelief. This things must've really had the minds of children if Chica really _believed_ that he liked her back just because of some staring and greetings. But he really couldn't quite focus on that right now, despite what a big shock it'd been. No, he was rather focused on the fact she still thought he was just 'dressed'. Mike's fists squeezed shut as all the anger and all the confusion and all the frustration building up over the last few days made his body burn. How could these things honestly try to rationalise what they had done, _damn it?!_ Didn't they understand what they had _done?!_

Well. He was going to _make them_ understand.

"Mike Schmidt?"

"Think I'm all _dressed up,_ do you?" Mike growled out, making Chica lean back slightly. "Think I'm one of _you,_ huh?! You _honestly_ think I'm some freaking endoskeleton, don't you?!"

"W-Well…you are…"

"I'm NOT!" Mike exploded suddenly, making Chica jump, "I'm NOT one of YOU, you sick bastard! I'm a _HUMAN BEING! Look what you DID TO ME!"_ He gestured to his new body, which Chica took a glance at. Surely, she'd noticed the blood or the distant rattling, or - hell! How had she not noticed his eyes were _not in his head?!_ "You KILLED ME, FOR GOD'S SAKE! You and that FUCKING BEAR AND THE RABBIT AND THAT FOX! YOU _KILLED ME! YOU'VE KILLED OTHER PEOPLE! PHONE GUY - YOU KILLED HIM TOO! YOU KILLED HIM AND YOU KILLED ME!"_

Chica stared at him silently, shoulders tensed and eyes wide. She didn't have to have a human face to tell Mike she was frightened of him, but he found he didn't care. It was actually quite satisfying that he was frightening _them_ for a change, rather than the other way around. "M-Mike Schmidt…?…Does this mean you don't love me too…?"

 _OH, FOR FUCK'S SAKE!_ Was she _really_ only focused on _that?!_ "OF COURSE I DON'T, YOU STUPID _BITCH!_ YOU'RE A ROBOT AND I'M A HUMAN BEING!"

Silence quickly followed, as though Chica had forgotten how to speak. She stared at him, her brow furrowed and her eyes wide at his outburst. Or perhaps she was actually having a realisation. Who knows. Mike didn't, nor did he care at that point. He himself was trembling in his rage, a sense of relief coming out that he had finally managed to get all that out of him. And now what? What would happen? Chica looked like she wanted to say something, but simply didn't know how to get it out, and it took another glance at Mike's face to tell him he had broken the chicken's heart. Somewhere inside him, in that place that apparently didn't remember who he was speaking to, Mike felt…guilty. He straightened himself, took a small step back, and opened his mouth to try to say something. Soothe the pain, he supposed. Could they feel pain? Well, they felt love apparently, so they probably felt pain too.

Before either could, however, Foxy's voice rang out throughout the restaurant, "Avast, me fellow shipmates! The sun be up above our heads! Time t' get back t' places!" He came sprinting passed the doorway, making Mike jump, and dashed to Pirate Cove. In the distance, Mike heard the footsteps of Bonnie and Freddy heading up to the stage.

He looked to Chica hesitantly. The chicken's head was lowered as she fiddled with her fingers; her expression the very definition of heartbreak. Mike's own brow furrowed, but Chica only sighed sadly and turned to leave. Her steps were slow and she no longer had that bounce in her heels. Mike felt like he had to do something, but the side of him that was still angry called the other side a stupid idiot. Thus, he left her alone and instead headed back to the backstage area, grabbing the fan again on his way out (it was an impulse, he supposed). He couldn't hang out in the office anymore; not during the day, at least. The kids might see and he didn't want to scare them. Then again, that might be the one incident that would finally get this hellhole shut down. Hey, there was an idea…

…No. No, he couldn't. Not to the kids. That wouldn't be fair.

As Mike made it back to his little haven, he found himself glancing at the two already on stage. His stomach - or, you know, whatever - lurched a little as he saw Freddy and Bonnie intertwine their fingers, shut their eyes and rub their noses against each other's in a sickly sweet display of affection. Mike stared for a moment and Bonnie must've sensed he was there, for the rabbit opened one eye and suddenly separated himself from Freddy, looking embarrassed. Freddy opened his eyes, having not realised, and looked over at Mike, who took that moment to quickly turn back and open the door to the backstage area. As Chica went up to join her band mates, Mike disappeared into the room and shut the door behind him.

Bonnie offered Chica a hopeful thumbs up, to which she just sighed and shook her head. Bonnie's ears flopped over sadly at her answer, his brow furrowing, then he looked to Freddy, who had been watching the two over his shoulder. They shared a gaze for a moment, then Freddy turned back to the front. Bonnie gave a sigh, collecting his guitar from his back and positioning it as he usually did; Chica doing the same with her cupcake. Bonnie forced himself to look out to the front as well, completely missing Freddy's narrowed glare at the door to the backstage area.


	3. The Festival of Freddies

**Awake and Alive**

 **I don** **'** **t own Five Nights at Freddy** **'** **s. Scott Cawthon does.**

 **Summary: Mike thought he understood everything going on at Freddy Fazbear** **'** **s Pizza, but, really, he has no idea. He never thought the animatronics might actually be capable of feelings, let alone have one of them actually** **…** **love him. Enough to turn him into one of them, perhaps?**

 **Notes: Takes place in an AU where the kids aren** **'** **t in the suits and the animatronics are just sentient robot** **…** **things**

 **Thank you to everyone who favourited and alerted this story! Special thanks to those who reviewed so far - I really appreciate it!**

…

There was a sense of déjà vu in this scenario. Not just in that he was hiding in the backstage area again - because that was going to happen all the time, so he might as well get used to it - but that he had yelled at a woman and broken her heart. He'd experienced that at least twice before - and all of those times had been unintentional.

Mike Schmidt had suffered from anger problems ever since he was seven. He'd been a delightful little boy until then; never in trouble at school, always kind to the neighbours and their children, willing to help his mother whenever she needed it. Then came the fateful day that his father, Terry Schmidt, never came home from work. He'd worked as a builder a few streets down, helping construct a new school that Mike's mother hoped to enrol him in when it was finished. It was a job that took it's toll on poor Terry, who had had constant back injuries ever since taking it up; a hard day's work often resulted in the man returning home to sit in his armchair and not move for the rest of the evening, not even to go to bed. Mike would entertain him by drawing him pictures with the set of markers he'd been given for his sixth birthday or playing cards with him (making up strange games where the rules would be improvised as they went along) or generally chatting about his day. Terry would always be smiling, despite his damaged spine, because Mike was smiling.

It was a Tuesday when that smile stopped because the man had stopped coming home. Even now, Mike didn't know the exact details of his father's death; nobody had ever told him in an effort to spare his feelings. They'd only ever told him it was all an accident, though he'd been able to pick up a slight detail during the funeral after eavesdropping on a conversation between his uncle and his mother: his dad had been crushed to death. By what, he didn't know. How, he didn't know either. Just that it was a horrible accident that no grown-ups would speak of in his presence.

It must've been the funeral that made something in him snap and, suddenly, all of his problems were the faults of others. His teachers were all at fault for his bad grades, his classmates were at fault for his bad moods, his grandparents were at fault for his markers running out of ink. Even the cat had been at fault. For what, he didn't know, but it'd done _something_. His perfect behaviour was soiled by starting fights with kids from the neighbourhood and his perfect attendance was soiled by a casual decision to continuously skip school (usually on a Friday). Innocence soiled by swearing, too many action movies. Friendship soiled by petty fights and constant blaming.

Soon enough, his anger problems landed him with a criminal record.

His mother had tried to get him into anger management, but a wrong comment made by another attendant had made Mike explode, which had resulted in only his _first_ trip to an actual prison. There'd been more to come.

He'd taken up smoking to try and calm his nerves, but so much nicotine in such short periods of time had made his mother worry. He'd promised her he'd quit and take up another habit to calm him. Those gummies had seemed to work, anyway.

Mike was no longer staring at his new feet like he usually was when he sat against the door to the backstage room. Now, he'd taken to staring at the shelf, where a Freddy head stared back. Criticizing, so. Mike sighed and turned his head, though his eyes stayed staring. He deserved it, he supposed. Did he? How would one read this situation? He'd exploded at her because she'd thought he loved her too and that he was an endoskeleton and because she'd failed to realise he was dead. That was _justified,_ right? They'd _murdered him._ They'd hunted him down like an animal (how ironic) and had straight up killed him. He was justified in his anger toward them. He was _allowed_ to hate them and want them gone.

But, at the same time…they didn't know. They honestly did think they'd just helped him get dressed and Chica really did think he loved her back. For very stupid reasons, but that was what she thought. Finding out that they could feel love had been enough of a shock; finding out that they could love _each other_ and other _people_ was something different. Bonnie and Freddy loved each other enough to sneak away from the others to have some private time to themselves and, according to Chica, even Foxy had someone he had his eye on. Chica…she loved _him. Him -_ a _human being._ It was just…sick and wrong.

Therefore, he had been totally justified in shouting at her like that.

…Right…?

Mike groaned and rubbed his face with one hand, still clutching the fan with the other. This was, quite possibly, the most confusing scenario his anger had ever put him into. He'd disrespected women before, enough to get him slapped or yelled at. His first girlfriend had left him after he'd shouted at her for the umpteenth time one evening and she'd decided she'd had enough. Taking her things, she'd walked out and never turned back. His second had been more willing to put up with his attitude. She understood his mental state and the way he worked things in his mind, due to suffering from depression herself once in her preteens (after the death of her younger brother). She'd stayed around for a lot longer than the first had, but it'd taken another step from Mike that made her scared to be around him. He'd thrown a plate at the wall during one of their conversations together - the normal stuff; him blaming her and her trying to reason with him - and she'd panicked and run out. Unlike the first, she hadn't returned for her things.

Mike had felt intense guilt over both situations. He'd attempted to patch things up so many times that it became routine and none of the attempts ever worked. Eventually, he just decided to stop dating altogether and had started to turn to more and more obscene ways to deal with all of his negative feelings.

Come to think of it, he _really_ wanted a cigarette right now.

For a moment, he considered going out to ask Nathan, a busboy, for one, but then he remembered his predicament and sighed. Another factor to add to this already confusing situation: how could he still feel nicotine urges when he was dead?

…To hell with it. Nothing made sense around here.

Mike took this time to listen to the children outside cheer on the animatronics as they sang for them. He wondered if Chica was performing properly or if her sadness was noticed by the kids. He'd listened out carefully for anything his ex-boss had to say about the performance, but the kids' cheering had blocked that out. For now, he was stuck just sitting here thinking.

For a while, he let his mind drift back to the discovery he'd made: Freddy and Bonnie. They were _together._ That was…weird, right? Don't get him wrong, he had nothing against gay people or anything, but…well, didn't kids' companies have something against it? Like, he'd heard once that gay couples weren't allowed in cartoons or anything, so what was up with animatronics? Why would they be programmed to be able to feel such things if that was frowned upon in children's media? And…a _bear_ and a _rabbit._ That was, what, defying the laws of nature, right?

Oh, hell. He didn't know.

 _Gotta be something to do around here to do other than think about that crazy crap…_ He thought bitterly to himself as he struggled again to his feet. But what else was there _to do?_ He was stuck in this room, with no plan and no hope, surrounded by his murderers; one of which fancied him, two others fancied each other and the other apparently fancied someone else and…and…and…!

Mike slapped a hand over his eyes and groaned, "I need advice…" He muttered to himself. But from who? Animatronics couldn't help, everyone else would just be scared of a blood-soaked Freddy, so -

"You used the wrong word."

Mike paused, then slowly raised his head. He took a glance around the room, at all of the heads, then over his shoulder at the door. That was a voice, right? He'd heard that, right? He looked over at the criticizing Freddy head from earlier, hesitated, then asked, "…Did you just talk to me?"

It didn't give a reply, only continued to stare. Mike sighed and shook his head, feeling stupid for talking to it, then he felt a sharp jab in his shin. He flinched and, before he could look at what had hit him, he heard the voice again, "Hey! You said the wrong word, Mister!"

Mike froze, then slowly looked around again. _Chill out, Mike…just…just take a look around…Bonnie head…Freddy head…little girl wearing a Freddy mask…_

 _WAIT, WHAT?!_

"Holy shit!" Mike exclaimed, jumping back suddenly upon looking down at the kid again. By pure instinct, he raised the fan as a weapon, but froze upon remembering hitting children was against his morals. She was standing to his left, little arms crossed over the front of her pink dress. Her blonde hair was tied up into pigtails with pink scrunchies. The Freddy mask she wore came with an attached top hat and a bow tie at the mask's base. Mike stared in shock at her. How had she even gotten in here?! He'd been blocking the door all day! "Uh…l-listen, kid, you can't be in here…See the 'Employees Only' sign? Means you, uh, you can't come in…"

"You used the wrong word, Mister." She repeated grumpily.

"W-Wha…?"

"Yeah!" Mike jumped again and spun around. On his right was a chubby little boy with spiked blond hair. His t-shirt had red and yellow horizontal stripes on it and his shorts were dark grey. On his face was a Chica mask. "How could you say such _mean things_ to Chica?!"

"Uh…"

"Yeah!" Mike's attention went to the table. Next to the Bonnie head, with his little legs dangling off the edge of the table, was a little boy. His arms were also crossed over his chest angrily, mirroring the little girl at Mike's heel. He wore a t-shirt with blue and yellow vertical stripes, while his shorts were dark blue. On his head of short, black hair was one of those little helicopter hats. Covering his face was a Bonnie mask. "That was _really mean!_ "

"You should say you're _sorry!"_ Mike, for the fourth time, jumped and looked down. This little girl had dark skin and long, brown hair tied up into braids. Her outfit was of more detail than the others, as she was dressed like a little pirate; complete with a little hook on her right hand. Covering her face was a Foxy mask.

Mike looked around at all of them in shock, unsure of what to say or do in this situation. He spluttered out nonsense for a moment before finally being able to form a proper sentence, "H-How did you all get _in here?!_ "

"Always been here, Mister." The boy with the Bonnie mask spoke up.

"B-But…I… _since when?!"_

"You used the _wrong word._ " The Freddy masked little girl repeated again, stomping her little foot this time.

Mike looked down at her, "Huh?"

"Chica's a _chicken,_ not a _girl doggie._ " She specified, sounding downright angry with him.

"Chica's a _duck!_ " The Bonnie boy exclaimed, like it was obvious, making the two blond children turn on him.

"Chica's a _chicken!"_ yelped the boy with the Chica mask, throwing up his little fists in irritation.

Mike watched as the children fought over the species of a aforementioned animatronic, confused and shocked. How could these kids possibly get in here without him knowing? Where had they hidden from him? And _when_ had they gotten in?! No way they were here during the incident with Chica - they would've been home with their mums and dads! "Uh…" He began, "Chica's actually a chick…" The kids all looked at him, confused and wanting an explanation. "Y'know…a _young chicken?_ She, um…hasn't grown her feathers out yet, so…"

"HA!" Mike jumped at how explosive the little girl's voice had been as she jabbed a finger in the direction of the boy who had claimed Chica to be otherwise, "Told you!"

The boy crossed his arms tighter in a strop, turning away from the other kids. Mike looked at them all, then peered closely at the Freddy masked girl. There was still colour on her, but something was…off. Something didn't seem right. He looked down at her shoes and another narrowed stare made him catch a detail he hadn't caught before: she wasn't standing on the floor, but rather floated an inch above it. He hastily returned his look to her face and squinted, realising only now how _translucent_ she really was. He did the same to the others; they were all the same.

…Ghosts. They were _ghosts._ But…but why would…Oh, God.

 _Oh, God…_ "…You're the missing kids…aren't you…?"

All four returned their attention to him as he stared at them all in shock, feeling his body go cold. After his first night on the job, after hearing Phone Guy speak of the Bite of '87, he'd done research on this place. The first article showed him the incident in which someone wearing an old suit had lured children into the back and…and…well. The result was standing right before him.

One by one - starting with the Freddy girl and ending with the Chica boy - the children moved their masks up onto their heads (with the exception of the Bonnie boy, who moved his to the side of his head as to not crush the propeller on his hat), only to reveal tear-filled eyes and evident tear stains on their cheeks. The Freddy girl's bright blue eyes stared up at him, "…We don't like talkin' about that, Mister…" She muttered, just as all the children began sniffling and wiping at their eyes. The Chica boy began outright crying, the Bonnie boy tried to hide his tears by placing an arm over his eyes; the Foxy girl buried her face into her hand and her hook and the Freddy girl wiped at her left eye with one hand.

Mike jolted as panic built up and he tried to make amends, "Woah, woah - hey, c'mon. I - I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…I'm sorry, guys. Please, don't cry, c'mon."

All of the children did their best to wipe away any and all tears that had surfaced, though Mike noticed that none of them could stop them from forming again. It was like the tears were always ready to go, whenever the children needed them to flow. The ex-security guard flinched as the Chica boy took hold of one of his fingers and pulled it. He didn't know what hurt him more: the look on the kid's face or the fact he could _feel him pull._ "Are you a new Freddy, Mister?"

"N-New Freddy?"

"We get new Freddies all the time." The Foxy girl explained, using the curve of her hook to wipe one remaining tear.

"Papa Bear brings them to us!" The Freddy girl exclaimed proudly, her hands going to her hips. She faltered, then rubbed the back of her neck, "But…they're never the _right one…_ "

Mike blinked twice, then looked around at them all again. The Bonnie boy had taken to giving the spare Bonnie head a hug, the Foxy girl was fixing her hook and the two blonds were still looking up at him. "Hey, um…kids…I don't mean to upset you more, but…I was told there were…more of you…"

The Freddy girl shifted uncomfortably and Mike was worried she'd start crying again, but she only looked sad, "Well…there's another boy around…but he always hangs out with _Uncle Bear…_ We tried to get him to play with us, but…he's shy…"

"Oh…" Mike faltered at the information, then looked at her again, "…Is…Is 'Uncle Bear'…yellow…?"

"Yeah. He doesn't talk, though."

 _Holy shit…_ Mike thought, looking around him in case 'Uncle Bear' was there, _I thought I just imagined that thing…it's fucking real…_

"Hey, Mister." Mike looked over at the Bonnie boy, who now only had one arm around the Bonnie head, "You said you needed advice?"

"Uh…yeah. B-But it's _really_ complicated adult stuff. Y-You wouldn't understand…" Mike tried to explain without sounding patronising. By the look on the boy's face, it hadn't worked.

"Hey!" The Freddy girl suddenly yelled, making Mike jump again. She really needed to stop that. "We should take him to Hello!"

"Hello?" Mike repeated. The children suddenly burst into giggles, like this was all one big inside joke, and none of them answered to Mike's baffled look.

The Freddy girl finished her giggle first and tugged on Mike's hand, "C'mon, Mister! Come meet Hello!" She was the first to leave him; darting over to the section of wall opposite the door. Mike began to call to her, but she disappeared right through the wall like something he'd seen in some of those paranormal horror movies. Mike watched in utter shock as the kids, one by one, all darted through the same spot.

The ex-security guard would've fainted had he not been dead. These children…they were _ghosts._ Ghosts and…were they even aware of it? Did they _know_ what they were? Well, they must've done. They walked through walls like it was normal and were apparently aware of their murders.

"H-Hey…kids?" He called uncertainly as he approached the spot they'd disappeared through, "…Kids? I…uh…I kind of can't do that!…What you just did, I can't…" He sighed in failure when the kids didn't respond and went to go, but paused when something was caught out of the corner of his eye. The section of wall they'd disappeared through had a mark cut into it. He reached out and gently pressed one of Freddy's fingers to it, then followed it with his eyes. It was a long vertical line that stretched above Mike's height, meeting another line to make a corner. That line then went horizontally to another line, creating another corner, and that line then went to the floor. As Mike stared, he realised it was shaped rather like…

…Like a doorway.

The ex-security guard tilted his head, placing the fan on the shelf beside him. It took three tries before he managed to get Freddy's fat fingers to grip the section. It took another two before he finally managed to pull the section of wall from the hole it was fitted into. In disbelief, he stared at the piece in his hand, then set it gently against the shelf next to him. Before him now was a doorway, unlit and uninviting. Mike squinted at it, found that the darkness welcomed him by giving him sight, then he took a few steps forward (picking up the fan again before he did so), "No way…" He muttered. He had absolutely no idea this existed; his boss never told him. But…why would they have cut out a piece of wall, only to put it back…?

Another couple of steps gave him the answer.

"…Oh, _fuck…_ " He muttered at the sight before him as it sent shockwaves of ice through his body.

Freddy costumes were slumped against all the walls, all of them stained with blood and anything else that had come out while they were being filled. Eyeballs rested on most of the noses, just outside the eyeholes, while others' had fallen out long ago and were resting either by their legs or in their laps. The room itself reeked of copper; of _blood._ So much so that Mike steadied himself against the doorway and retched. Of course, nothing came out, for there was nowhere for it to come out of, but the pain of heaving was still there. He retched and gagged five times more before he rested his forehead against his arm and scowled at nothing, his eyesight becoming blurry with tears that could never be shed, "They…They didn't even give them a decent _burial…_ Just _left them here…_ they…they were still _alive_ when they…" He couldn't bear to finish the sentence. Instead, he covered his eyes with the arm he used to steady himself.

In his anger, he almost didn't hear the conversation from within, and only managed to catch the Foxy girl exclaim. "Hello, Hello!"

"Hello, hello!" came an adult male's voice back at the Foxy girl's, which made all of the kids giggle again. "Hey, kids! Nice to see you again!"

Mike's own eyes widened at the voice. It was the most recognisable thing at the current moment and it sent another shockwave throughout his chest, though this one was warm. He slowly straightened himself, his inner expression stuck in one of blatant shock, then he turned to look at the Freddy at the very far back, "…Phone Guy…?"

There was silence for a few moments, then he heard a hesitant, "…Hello, hello?"

"Phone Guy!" Mike exclaimed, his anger suddenly swapped out for relief so fast he wondered when it even happened. Mike stepped further into the room, ignoring all the other Freddies to get to the one in the back. The Freddy girl was sitting on its left thigh, while the Chica boy sat on its right. The Bonnie boy had climbed up to sit on its shoulders, while the Foxy girl remained standing beside it. The Freddy suit stared up at him as Mike approached. Its eyeballs sat on its nose, surrounded by what looked like shards of glass. "Holy _shit -_ it _is_ you!"

Phone Guy's hands had moved up to block the ears of the boy on his thigh, "Um…and you are…?"

"Mike! Mike Schmidt!" Mike didn't hesitate in holding out his hand for Phone Guy to shake, his face now a large smile. "I can't believe I'm meeting you! You're, like, my freaking _hero,_ man!"

"Seriously?" Phone Guy asked as he reached up to shake Mike's hand, though he sounded rather amused. What had he ever done to deserve being called someone's hero?

"You saved my _ass, man!"_ Mike added, "Well…for the first few nights…" Sensing Phone Guy's confusion, he elaborated, "I'm the security guard after you!"

There was a pause, as though Phone Guy was only just remembering he _had_ been a security guard, then he exclaimed, "Oh! Well, in that case, nice to meet you, Mike Schmidt!" He enthusiastically shook Mike's hand with his right hand, covering it with his left.

Mike simply couldn't wipe the grin off of his face, despite the other things in the room with them, "Holy _fuck -_ I actually - this is - I actually can't believe I'm fucking _meeting you!"_ Phone Guy suddenly took back his hands and covered the Freddy girl's ears. Mike slapped his own hand over his mouth, felt himself warm up in embarrassment, then amended, "Oh, shit - uh, no, fuck - wait, I, oh, crap - wait -"

"Better hold off on the language there, Junior." Phone Guy said to him, his hands having swapped from the Freddy girl's ears to the Foxy girl's and then to the Bonnie boy's. "I'm running out of hands."

"Uh…right…s-sorry…" Mike muttered, feeling embarrassment practically drown him. God, this wasn't how he pictured this happening. Then again, he hadn't pictured the Freddy suits or the kids either.

"It's alright, don't panic. We're all human here." Phone Guy said gently, making Mike smile again. God, this guy was so much nicer in person. Not that Mike had ever questioned Phone Guy's kindness. "You called me Phone Guy earlier."

"Oh! Uh…I, um…it's just a…um…"

"Heh. I like it."

"R-Really?"

"Not the worst thing I've ever been called." Phone Guy gave a shrug.

"O-Oh, good…cause, uh, I mean…I've been calling you that for so long, i-it'd be kinda weird calling you…uh…" He waited for Phone Guy to give him his real name, but Phone Guy simply waved a hand.

"It's fine, Mike. Don't worry. You can keep calling me that, it's fine."

Mike's grin widened at how understanding he was, then opened his mouth to say more, only to be interrupted by the little girl on Phone Guy's thigh. She let out a gasp, then turned her head to the doorway, "Papa Bear's starting up my favourite song!" She exclaimed. Mike strained his ears to hear the tune coming from the stage outside. He briefly wondered how she could hear it over the sound of the children's cheering and had the right mind to ask, but she'd already replaced her mask and had jumped off of Phone Guy's lap, bolting toward the door, "Bye, bye, Mister! Bye, Hello!"

"Bye!" Phone Guy called back, waving a hand.

Suddenly, the boys jumped up from their places on Phone Guy too, replacing their masks quickly and exclaiming that they too wished to see their favourite animatronics perform. Phone Guy chuckled as they left, calling out, "Bye, kids! Come see me soon, okay?" They gave no reply, but he was satisfied nonetheless. Phone Guy chuckled, went to say something, then paused when he noticed the Foxy girl hadn't joined her friends, "Hey…what's the matter, sweetie? Aren't you gonna go see Freddy, Chica and Bonnie?"

The girl was fiddling with her hook shyly, "Well…they're lovely, but…Foxy doesn't perform anymore…"

"Aw…" Phone Guy reached over and gently patted her back, "Well, why don't you go and see him in Pirate Cove? I'm sure he'll be glad to see his first mate!"

The Foxy girl looked up at him with such delight Mike thought she'd explode, then she nodded and replaced her mask, "Okay - I mean -" She saluted, "Aye, aye, Hello!"

Phone Guy saluted to her as well, then watched as she took off, passed through Mike's legs and out the doorway. "Bye! Say hi to Foxy for me!" He laughed quietly to himself, then looked to Mike.

The younger male, after having watched the girl disappear, had turned back to Phone Guy and was fiddling nervously with his fingers. He probably hadn't made the best first impression with the man, and he wouldn't be surprised if Phone Guy told him to leave, "Uh…I…um…"

But Phone Guy didn't tell him to leave. Rather, he tilted his head in amusement, "Wanna sit beside me, Junior?" He patted the place the Foxy girl had been standing.

"Would I!" Mike exclaimed, hurrying to sit down beside him. Phone Guy barely had time to take back his hand before Mike sat down. As he placed the fan down beside his leg, Mike noted, "Those kids freaking adore you."

"I keep them company when the others can't." Phone Guy answered humbly.

Mike finally got comfortable, then looked to Phone Guy, "' _Hello'?"_

Phone Guy chuckled, "They aren't very good with nicknames. But, hey, just about as good as you, eh? 'Phone Guy'?" Mike gave an awkward chuckle in response, so Phone Guy reassured him, "It's fine. I like both."

Mike looked away from a moment, then looked back hesitantly. Ever since he'd arrived here, this guy's voice had been one of his only sources of comfort from all the horrors that threatened him. It felt odd to actually meet the guy, but good too. "…You must think I'm really creepy, huh?"

"No." Phone Guy said immediately, with an air of lazy happiness about him, "Actually, it's, uh, it's quite nice to have someone so ecstatic to meet me. The kids were so scared…" There was a moment of silence, in which Mike stared at him in the only way a man meeting his idol could, then Phone Guy spoke up, "Speaking of which, the kids said you wanted advice?"

"Oh, uh…" Mike had almost forgotten about that. He rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably, "…I dunno how much help you'll be…"

"Well, why don't you tell me what's bothering you, Junior, and I'll see what I can do?"

Mike momentarily smiled, but it quickly faded when he remembered all that had happened and all that he wanted to ask. What to start with, anyway? His confusion about the fact the animatronics were _alive?_ The kids? This room? Freddy and Bonnie? Chica? He mulled this over in his mind, while Phone Guy waited patiently, then he said slowly, "…Those kids…they're the _missing_ ones…right…?"

Phone Guy grew tense beside him, "We…don't really talk about that much, Junior…" He said hesitantly, but with a certain sternness that made Mike regret ever picking that to start with.

"S-Sorry. I-I didn't…"

"It's fine, it's alright." He patted Mike's knee in a way that reminded Mike of his mother, then he encouraged him, "Anything else that's bothering you, or is that it?"

Mike mulled over his other options, knowing he couldn't dwell on the subject of the children, lest Phone Guy get upset. With a firm carefulness, he said, "…I had no idea the animatronic were _alive._ "

"Oh." Phone Guy started, like he'd expected that to be next. He probably did. "Yeah, I know. To be honest, I've always had my suspicions. They just…they're too _smart_ not to be, you know?"

"Yeah…But, like…they _feel things._ They… _love,_ and…and other stuff…"

"Hm. I know."

"Did they treat you like they're little buddy too?" Mike asked after a moment, realising nothing he said would probably shock Phone Guy. He was too much of an expert to be shocked by anything more in this place. Much more of an expert than Mike, that was for sure.

"Did they welcome me? Yeah. For the limited amount of time they could, anyway. I was put in here the following morning."

Mike's brow furrowed. Phone Guy hadn't had the - what - the freedom that Mike had had since waking up here. He wondered if that meant, then, that he had no idea about Bonnie and Freddy. "Why wasn't I put in here?"

Phone Guy pondered for a moment, then gave a slow shrug, "…I don't know. What have you, uh, what have you been doing since you woke up?"

"Just hiding in the backstage part, mainly. Sitting against the door and stuff. Just…thinking." Phone Guy let out a chortle and Mike had the right mind to question it.

"You were sitting in front of the door." Phone Guy said, like it was obvious. Mike thought for a moment, then exclaimed a curse as he covered his face with his palms. Of _course_ that was the answer! He'd been blocking the doorway the entire freaking time! These Freddy suits weighed quite a bit and…and…

God. He was a freaking _idiot._ In front of his hero, no less!

"Well, there's that mystery solved…" Mike muttered bitterly, still feeling stupid. His hands closed into fists as he felt anger build up, but he willed it to keep down. If there was anyone he didn't want to show his anger in front of - beside his mother - it was Phone Guy. As he tried to focus on calming down, he raised his gaze, only to catch sight of all the other Freddies in here. He gulped, expecting one to move, "…All these guys…"

Phone Guy raised his head to look at them as well. He glanced around at each one, then placed a calming hand on Mike's shoulder, "It's alright, Mike. They won't bother you. Pretty much all lost their minds by now."

"Oh, God…"

"In fact, let me introduce you to some of them." It was more of a question then it was a recommendation. Mike gave a nod at that. For some reason, he found it necessary to know at least some of the names of his fellow guards that had perished due to Freddy Fazbear and his friends. "That one over there," Phone Guy pointed to the one in the right hand corner of the room, "that's Bob. That one in front of him, that's Jack." Mike nodded and offered a wave. Neither responded. "Uh - over here is Andrew." He gestured to the one slumped against the wall, who, as if on cue, began humming a slow tune. Mike flinched in fright and Phone Guy kneaded his shoulder comfortingly, "Don't worry. He does that sometimes. Likes to write songs too, so don't be surprised if he starts singing." Mike gave a nod, so Phone Guy moved on, "This over here is Jordan. So far, I think she's the only girl in here, so that's, uh, nice, I guess. Uh - she also likes to sing, but she mostly just talks to herself." Mike gave another nod, "Over by the door - next to Bob, see - is Wade. Oh, and the one with the box in his lap? That's Mark." Phone Guy gave him a moment to process that, then leaned in and muttered, "And, uh, whatever you do, don't take the box from him. He says it's his best friend. Tim, I think he calls it."

Mike nodded slowly, "…That far gone, huh?"

"Hm? Oh, no. He was doing that when he first got here. Said he found it while investigating some wine in a new house he'd bought or something."

"…Oh."

"No. It's the talking that he took on when he, uh, lost it."

"Talki -"

"HELLO, EVERYBODY!" The Freddy suit with no eyeballs and shattered glass around the nose suddenly exclaimed and Mike responded with a shocked scream. He jumped so violently he was almost in Phone Guy's lap as Mark continued, "MY NAME IS MARK -"

"I'm here too!" The one Phone Guy had identified as Wade spoke up.

"SHUT UP, WADE!" Mark suddenly shouted, then held up his tiny box, "Tim thinks you should shut up! Isn't that right, Tim?" He changed his pitch to sound higher, then shook the box in Wade's face as he went on, "Yeah, Mark! SHUT UP, WADE!"

Mike watched the spectacle before him, clinging onto Phone Guy's arm for dear life in fear that Mark's loud voice would alert someone outside, but Phone Guy was only chuckling lowly to himself. Jack, Bob, Wade and Jordan were all laughing wildly, while Andrew took to playing air guitar. It was like a strange circus act had started up right before Mike's eyes; a festival of Freddies, if you will. Phone Guy waved the hand that wasn't connected to the arm Mike was holding onto, bringing their attention to him, "Alright, alright, guys! Let's quieten down now, huh?"

And, just like that, all the other Freddies slumped down into the states they'd been in when Mike entered the room, like Phone Guy had just said the password for their off buttons. Maybe he had. Mike didn't know how insane people worked. "It's alright, Mike. You'll get used to that."

"Uh…yeah…" He became aware of how long and how tightly he'd been clutching Phone Guy's arm and felt himself grow warm in embarrassment, "Shit. Sorry, man, I…"

"It's okay, Mike. Really."

Mike smiled, leaned back, and was contented to just sit there in the silence next to Phone Guy, but too much was on his mind right now. Sat next to him was the expert of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, who had survived so long that he might as well have a plaque on the wall. He could ask anything about the company and Phone Guy would probably be able to answer with utmost honesty. Mike sat back, contemplated his options, then said suddenly, "Chica's in love with me."

It was so sudden that even Mike himself was surprised at how hasty that was. He tried to think of something to say to remedy the situation, but he couldn't think of anything, so he embarrassingly sat there. Finally, Phone Guy spoke up, "…Wow."

"Y-Yeah…"

"That's quite a pickle you're in, huh?"

"…Yeah…"

"Is, uh, is that what you wanted advice about? Because, um, well, I married the first girl I ever fell for, so…yeah. Not a lot I can give you…"

Mike faltered at that. Phone Guy was _married?_ Well, it wasn't like he was shocked or anything, no, but…well. "You're married?"

"Was. We divorced a while ago."

Mike blinked twice. Phone Guy had managed to marry his first girlfriend…and then divorce her? How? H-He was, like, the nicest guy Mike had ever met! "Uh…i-if I may ask, how come?…Unfaithful?…Uh…addiction, maybe?"

"She couldn't put up with me anymore."

"C-Couldn't…?"

"I wouldn't give up my job here. So, she gave up on me."

"Y-You wouldn't…?" Mike's brow furrowed. Phone Guy had picked this job over his own wife? A part of Mike didn't blame her for getting rid of him, if that was the case, but another part…"But…why? I mean, you knew all about this. All about the animatronics and them killing people and…and you _stayed?!_ What the hell, man?! If I was you, I would've bolted!"

"Exactly, Mike. I knew all about it. Which is why I couldn't leave." Mike paused, deflating, and Phone Guy elaborated, "I couldn't let some other poor soul come here and get killed. I just couldn't do that, Mike, it wouldn't have been fair. I could've told her that, but she would've never believed me, so I let her do what she wanted."

Mike was speechless. Phone Guy had honestly let his marriage go, let go of the woman he loved, just so someone else wouldn't have to go through with this. That was…possibly the most noble thing Mike had ever heard. His brow creased up for a second, "…Phone Guy?"

"Yes?"

"You're a fucking saint."

Phone Guy let out a hearty laugh, to which Mike gave a brief smile at, then the older man patted Mike's back, "Now, enough about me. What's this Chica conundrum you've got?"

Mike sighed. Of course. He'd managed to distract himself long enough with Phone Guy's life - it was time to get back to his own. "She says she's in love with me. She thinks I love her too just because I've looked at her and I said 'hi' a few times. I…I yelled at her for it. Called her a 'stupid bitch' and everything. I-I didn't mean to snap, but…y'know?"

"I do know." Phone Guy gave a nod, then pondered for a moment. For some reason, Mike expected him to scold him for such behaviour toward a woman, but he brushed that thought aside. Phone Guy knew about these things far more than he did and probably hated them even more. He didn't think he'd particularly care. The silence became agonising, so Mike opened his mouth to ask Phone Guy what he thought about that, but Phone Guy beat him to it, "…What you need to understand, Mike, is that these robots have the minds of kids. Sure, they might know about relationships and love, enough for Bonnie and Freddy to be going on strong - uh, yeah, I know all about them - but they don't know enough to know how serious it is. Chica thought you were flirting, probably took those signs as, uh, something else entirely. Kids usually do. The point is, Mike, I understand where you were coming from. These robots killed you and you have every right to be mad and upset, but, uh, but just bear in mind they didn't know what they were doing. I'm not saying that what they did wasn't wrong. It was. But…they're practically children, Mike. In the mind, they're no different than those kids who were in here earlier. Only a little more mature. I'll never say you have to forgive them, Mike. You don't and no one is asking you to. We're all in the same boat here. Just bear in mind that they never meant to actually hurt you, and you didn't mean to do the same to them."

Mike nodded twice, rather shakily, and absorbed the information. It wasn't like it was hugely new to him, but hearing someone else say it made it make sense more than when it was trapped in Mike's head. Ever since his second meeting with the robots, he'd noticed a child-like factor of their personalities that made them all the more innocent. Bonnie in particular, he thought, seemed to have such a childish wonder about him that would've made him rather lovable, had it not been for the truth of this establishment. Chica too. Freddy seemed to be the most mature out of all of them, though he'd barely spoken to Mike since the ex-security guard woke up. It was too difficult to confirm each personality right now. Foxy…he didn't know what to think of Foxy. "You saying it'd be even more sick and wrong if I were to date the chicken?"

"Uh…it'd certainly be strange. But, um, no. T-That's not really the point I was trying to - do you want to?"

"Fuck no."

"Oh. Well, that's good. Humans dating the animatronics - bad for business, y'know?"

Mike let out a chuckle, then sat back against the wall. "I…I just don't know what to do…I feel kinda bad for yelling at her like that, but…but I still feel like she deserved it…I mean, she had a hand in _killing me,_ and she doesn't even realise it. I'm sitting here freaking out and she doesn't have the _decency_ to take a moment and _think about what she's fucking DONE!"_ He brought his right fist down onto the floor between he and Phone Guy, his knuckles accidentally brushing the older man's leg on the way down. "…Shit…sorry, I -"

"It's fine, Mike." Phone Guy said gently.

Mike sucked in a breath. Phone Guy was so patient with him and so kind that it made Mike want to, he didn't know, repay him in some way. He wanted to give the guy a medal, really. "…Y'know…if we did survive all this…I woulda asked you out for a drink…"

"Hehe…really?"

"Yeah. Saved my ass, man."

"…Well, that'd have to be an orange juice for me. I don't drink."

Mike let out a very short, half-hearted chuckle. Of course he didn't. He was a saint, right? Very quickly, however, did Mike's smile drop. For a long while, he sat there beside Phone Guy, simply leaning against the wall and thinking; just like he'd done ever since he'd woken up. Phone Guy seemed perfectly willing to let him bask in the silence for a while. Mike wondered if Phone Guy had done the same thing he had upon waking up. Had he also panicked when he met the animatronics for what they seemingly were? Did they welcome him with open arms, playfully scold him for hiding away in the office? Did he scream countless times in fear or did he manage to hold his own against them all? Did Bonnie treat him so kindly? Did Freddy talk much to him? Did Foxy offer the role of first mate to him? Did Chica offer a trip to the kitchen? Did he experience anything that Mike had? Probably not. Phone Guy was the expert of this place. Mike was positive he could answer every and any questions the younger male may have. Mike, on the other hand…well, Mike was no where near that level. He may have survived twelve nights, but Phone Guy had survived longer. Compared to him…Mike was just a scared little kid; no different than those children who had been in here earlier. It felt like that, anyway.

And, suddenly, Mike found himself telling Phone Guy everything. He told Phone Guy about his father and how the light had seemed to disappear when he died. He told him how no one told Mike how his father died; it was all a secret. He told him all about his anger problems and where they had landed him in the past ("Got into some crazy shit when I was a kid…") and how it had led him to getting this job today. No one would hire a young man with a harsh face and a criminal record, and he'd been desperate ever since his mother had first fallen ill. Working the night shift at a pizzeria had seemed easy and he was already used to staying up all night, so it seemed perfect. Didn't pay all that well, but it was enough. He told him how much a comfort those phone calls had been on his first few nights (Phone Guy smiled at this) and how he'd sobbed over Phone Guy's death after finishing his shift on night four (the smile dropped, though he assured him that wasn't weird). He even confessed to playing over the first three nights' recordings just to get that comfort again (Phone Guy reassured him again that that wasn't weird). He told him how he'd sobbed when Freddy had caught him and how he'd wanted his mother more than any other time in his life. Mike felt embarrassed throughout his rambling, but Phone Guy was patient and gentle.

"Guess you'd understand how I feel, huh?" Mike's voice was rather hoarse. "You went through all that too…still feels kinda silly…"

"We're all human, Mike."

"I know…" He gave Phone Guy a moment of silence; a break from his talking (though he was fairly sure Phone Guy didn't mind). "…I was really being a baby about it, though…I mean, I didn't tell anyone this, but I actually kept a picture of my mom on the desk when I started my shifts…! Put it on one of the monitors…probably still there. Can't imagine the robots would take it. I mean, Mom -" He paused ultimately at that point, his body seemingly freezing as he did so. He distantly heard Phone Guy say his name, but he suddenly sounded so far away. Everything was distant to Mike right now, as he finally acknowledged the fact that had alluded him all this time. Perhaps he'd realised it ages ago and his subconscious had battled it down until Mike forgot it was even there. Spare him the emotional pain of it all; he was facing enough as it was with the chicken. But his subconscious had lost now, and it was clear in Mike's mind what he'd missed.

He'd never see his mother again.

Mike's eyes widened somehow and his chest suddenly ached. Ever since his father died, Mike and his mother had been all that was left of the family. Uncles and aunts were distant, grandparents wanted nothing to do with a child who couldn't control his anger and Mike was an only child. They only had each other. They'd done well for themselves too, with his mother having a steady enough job to keep she and her son going. Mike made money here and there, albeit illegally, and the two were fine on their own. His mother never dated again after his father; not enough time and not enough love to share between Mike and another man.

With old age came problems, however, and it was quickly that his mother became ill. Her memory faded easily, she was amused over almost everything and worried about almost nothing; like a child. Mike was the only person she always remembered first try; one-hundred percent; on the dot. Even when his mother was heavily sick, they were together and had each other's backs.

Mike stopped all of the illegal stuff when the doctor told him about her new state of health. He swore he'd never go back to it. He swore he'd try to get better at controlling his anger. He took up a job for her, just to pay for the things she no longer could.

Everything Mike Schmidt did, he did for his mother.

Mike was frozen in place, a massive surge of guilt hitting him. How could he have not thought of her before?

"Mike? Mike? What's wrong, Junior?"

"…Mom…"

"Hm?" Phone Guy leaned forward slightly, relieved to have finally gotten a response. Mike couldn't go crazy on him too; he wouldn't be able to handle it.

"Mom…" Mike repeated, though he didn't seem to be directly responding to Phone Guy. He seriously had to question this whole 'dead' thing at some point because he could suddenly feel a familiar stinging in his eyes that he had felt only a few nights ago and his sight became more and more blurry by the second. "Mom…!"

And, with that, the dam burst.

Mike was only vaguely aware that he could actually feel cold rivers travelling down his cheeks as he sobbed loudly, covering his eyes with his palms. He no longer cared about how he appeared in front of his idol as he bawled and wailed; just as he had when he was a baby; when his mother could hold him at any minute's notice. He opened his mouth as widely as it would go as he wept. Everyone around him was missing from his reality until, suddenly, he felt arms wrap around him in an embrace. Mike's eyes flew open, his hands having come away as he was pulled to another body, and he froze upon realising what exactly was different.

Instead of feeling Freddy's arms and Freddy's chest, he felt a human's. He felt the soft cotton of a shirt under his chin and muscles tighten as they held him. Hair was faintly tickling his ear and hinges and temples of a pair of glasses were digging rather painfully into the side of his head. The shoulder his chin rested on was glowing faintly; translucent.

Just like the children from earlier.

Mike was suddenly aware that his own Freddy suit was gone too as he tilted his head just enough to identify blond hair. "Ph-Phone Guy…? Y-You're…I…w-what happened to you…?" He glanced down at himself, finding the same glow, "A-And me…w-what happened to _me…?!_ "

"Just roll with it, Mike." Phone Guy murmured to him comfortingly, "It happens all the time around here. How did you think the kids saw us earlier? We weren't always Freddies to them."

"I…I…c-can you…?" Mike's eyes rolled around to peek at the rest of the ex-security guards. People he'd never seen before, translucent just like he and Phone Guy, were littered everywhere; each one in the same place and same position as the Freddies. Mark had dark, fluffy hair and glasses; Jordan had a braid and bags under her eyes; Jack wore a hat of some kind. He couldn't see the others from where he was angled, but the ones he could see looked like they were sleeping. Painfully so.

"See you? Yeah. You have brown hair. Sticks up."

"I…y-yeah…"

"I'll try and explain it to the best of my ability later. Now, just let it out, Junior."

Mike blinked, then did just as Phone Guy instructed. He shifted easily and quickly back into his wails. He buried his face into Phone Guy's shoulder, not as a method to muffle his sobs, but to feel comfort. He balled the back of Phone Guy's shirt in his fists and twisted and squeezed and pulled the material in state of despair, but Phone Guy - as always - didn't mind. He patted and rubbed Mike's back, muttering to him how everything would be alright because he had Phone Guy now; they would stick together. Mike wasn't alone anymore. While this was comforting to hear, it did nothing to silence Mike's wails, but Phone Guy didn't care. The sound of a grown man crying so hard was heartbreaking for anyone of any age and knowing this man was so young and so devoted to his mother made it all worse. Mike had to admit he'd never cried so hard.

Mike must've sobbed for hours. It must've been, for the sounds of cheering children had silenced ages ago. Mike and Phone Guy were still holding each other, though Mike's cries had finally subsided and he was now numb and heavily leaning on Phone Guy's shoulder. Phone Guy gave some last pats and rubs to Mike's back as the younger man settled himself, then slowly peeled himself off of Phone Guy. As he did so, he felt Freddy's shoulders beneath his grasp and sucked in a breath. They were back. "Are you okay?" Phone Guy asked.

"No." Mike answered honestly. He took a moment to collect his thoughts, then raised his gaze to Freddy's face, disappointed that it wasn't still Phone Guy's, "H-How did we…?"

"I told you, Mike, it just happens. Randomly, I think. It, uh, it's probably a reminder that we're human. Act human, get to be human. A - I don't know - supernatural thing, y'know?"

"I…"

Phone Guy patted one of Mike's hands sympathetically, "So…what're you going to do now?…Are you going back out there?"

"I…I wanna try and…and tell the night guard…that we're here…T-They might…help in some way…"

"It's worth a shot."

Mike's movements were automatic, robotic and devoid of emotion as he got to his feet, grabbing the fan from the floor and hugging it to himself like it was a hurt child. Phone Guy didn't release his hand until he was sure Mike could walk by himself, then he watched as Mike walked over to the doorway. "Good luck, Mike. You come by any time at all, okay? I'll always be here and always be all ears."

Mike gave a mechanical nod as he walked out of the Freddy Room. His mind felt like it was already crumbling; his thoughts were scattered and not entirely pieced together. He didn't know what made him grab the slab of wall and put it back into place; it was a natural reaction. Just like Fazbear Entertainment wanted from its employees; completely secrecy about what they saw in this restaurant. Policies and all that.

Mike turned to go to the door, then jolted and paused upon realising someone else was here. Freddy Fazbear stood before him, fists at his sides. The door behind him was shut, so Mike couldn't count on Bonnie being a reliable witness to whatever Freddy was going to do to him. "F-Freddy…?"

"You know the rules around here." Freddy said lowly, fixing Mike with a glare that a children's entertainer shouldn't be able to make; especially a robotic one. "But I bet you don't know _my_ rules." Mike was suddenly alarmed when Freddy walked around the table briskly, getting to Mike and leaning in. It made the ex-security guard back up to the wall in shocked fear, "I don't see what Chica obviously does in you. In fact, I _really_ don't like you. But let me get one rule set in stone, right here, right now." He held up one index finger, making Mike jump, and his tone was suddenly dark, "You make one mistake. You mess up one time. Just the one. You do anything - just _anything_ \- that makes me think you're gonna hurt one of my friends, and you won't have to worry about what the others think of you." He jabbed Mike harshly in the chest, making Mike wince and cringe, "Because I will _end_ whatever's left of you in that suit. Got it, Mike?" Mike didn't reply, only gulped, but Freddy seemed satisfied nonetheless. The bear leaned back from Mike, his glare now more warning than angry. He stared at Mike for a moment or two, checking if he'd fully understood and if he had any complaints, then turned and walked back to the door. He flung it open, stepped out, then slammed it shut behind him.

Mike was stuck staring at the door for several moments afterwards; stunned and scared. It wasn't just because his murderer had just threatened him and it wasn't just because that behaviour had contradicted what Phone Guy had said earlier. It was something completely new and something he wasn't prepared for.

The fan was the first to drop to the floor, then Mike followed, landing on his backside with his back against the closed doorway to the Freddy Room and his legs stretched out. It couldn't be…it couldn't be true…it just couldn't…

"…He fucking _knows…_ "


	4. Number Six

**Awake and Alive**

 **I don** **'** **t own Five Nights at Freddy** **'** **s. Scott Cawthon does.**

 **Summary: Mike thought he understood everything going on at Freddy Fazbear** **'** **s Pizza, but, really, he has no idea. He never thought the animatronics might actually be capable of feelings, let alone have one of them actually** **…** **love him. Enough to turn him into one of them, perhaps?**

 **Notes: Takes place in an AU where the kids aren** **'** **t in the suits and the animatronics are just sentient robot** **…** **things**

…

After the incident with Freddy, Mike Schmidt worked very, very hard to stay away from the animatronics. He couldn't bear to go near any of them right now, ever since he'd found out that piece of knowledge. The only animatronic that had attempted to get to him was Bonnie, who had stood on the other side of the door one evening while Mike was slumped against it. "Mike Schmidt?" He'd heard the bunny call gently, "Are you alright in there? Are you sad? Mike Schmidt? Is everything alright? Do you need anything?" Mike never graced him with a reply. Bonnie hadn't given up, though he did give Mike his space and had left him alone until brave enough to try again. Somewhere deep inside of him, Mike appreciated the care.

He spent all of this time hiding away with Phone Guy. The older man did his very best to comfort Mike and provide the human comfort he needed to get through this. It worked, for the most part, Mike supposed. He'd shared a couple more hugs with the man after almost completely breaking down, during which they're real, _human_ selves became visible. Even then, Mike had never seen Phone Guy's face. It was becoming something of interest to Mike. He'd wondered what the man looked like since he heard the phone calls and, now that he had a chance to, fate wasn't letting him. All he knew were blond hair and glasses.

He'd learned more about his idol too. To distract the younger male, Phone Guy would go into anecdotes on the stupid things he'd done in his life and it led to Mike knowing more about Phone Guy than he'd cared to know (not that he'd never been uninterested in Phone Guy's life). His favourite colour was orange (sometimes it was red, though - he was so indecisive); he'd never been to a football, soccer or baseball game before, nor did he have any team that he supported; he liked reading a lot; he was allergic to paprika; he'd been in a car accident when he was eighteen due to a drunk friend leaning against him while he was trying to drive them both home. Somewhere in those stories, Phone Guy had revealed to Mike that he had a daughter. She was five right now (going on six), he saw her on weekends and - by the sound of it - she adored her father. That piece of information somehow made Mike feel worse; he had no idea Phone Guy had lost that much.

Despite whatever comfort Phone Guy provided, it still wasn't enough for Mike to completely forget what he'd learned only a few nights ago: Freddy knew. Freddy - the one animatronic that had killed him - knew Mike Schmidt was human. 'I will end whatever's left of you in that suit'; 'Mike' instead of 'Mike Schmidt' - it all added up perfectly. Freddy Fazbear knew Mike Schmidt was a human being. He knew that Mike had actually been murdered and he knew that Mike wasn't an endoskeleton. He actually knew. It was something Mike was having a bit of trouble wrapping his head around. None of the other animatronics had given any indication that they knew too, so…did that mean Freddy was the only one? Was he the only one aware of Mike's actual species? Why was that? Was Freddy programmed to be smarter than the others due to being the leader? Made sense, he supposed. But what if the others did know? What if they were actors playing along in Freddy's sick little production? What if they were being nice to him just to later reveal the stabbing truth? Were they all really as innocent as Phone Guy said?

There was only one way to find out.

He'd get out of here. He'd get out and he'd find Freddy and he'd ask him how he knew and why he knew and what he was going to do now because, honestly, he didn't have a goddamn clue. Forget finding the night guard for now; it was Freddy he was after. Mike had concocted his plan already: he'd wait until the night guard was gone, leaving him with about an hour and a half or so to find Freddy and question him before the day staff started to show up. The restaurant was small; it wouldn't take that long to find Freddy. When he'd revised this plan to Phone Guy, the man had pondered over it, looking for any faults, then gave a couple of slow nods, "It…could work, y-yeah. Most likely. Just…be careful, alright, Junior? Uh - Freddy isn't as nice as the others."

"Yeah, I know." Mike nodded, "But if he knows I'm human - _we're_ human, then there's gotta be some story behind it, right?" Phone Guy gave a nod and Mike directed a glare over at the sealed doorway, "As soon as the night guard's gone, I'll get outta here and find Freddy. Then that son of a bitch will give me the answers I wanna know."

And that was exactly what he did.

Mike and Phone Guy waited in baited silence as they heard the manager grumbling to himself outside. Mike's name popped up a few times, so Mike guessed he was wondering where his body was. He hadn't, however, come to check back here, so that gave Mike a big enough clue that he didn't particularly care what happened to it; so long as it was out of customers' sight. Mike lifted a middle finger in the direction the voice was coming from. Phone Guy gave a light chuckle. It wasn't long, however, that the manager gave up on wondering about Mike's whereabouts and went to go, leaving the place to the animatronics until the night guard came along. Mike and Phone Guy continued to wait for a while, during which Mike gave some uncomfortable shuffles, Finally, the silence was broken by Mike tilting his head to address Phone Guy, "Do you have any idea what the story could be?" He whispered, eyes on the exit just in case Bonnie or the night guard were to pop up. By the sound of footsteps outside, the night guard was in his station and Bonnie was already out.

"Hm?" Phone Guy looked to him.

"How Freddy could know we're human. Got any ideas?"

"I don't, no." Phone Guy shook his head, looking away to try and recall all the information he knew about this place. "From what I know, they should _all_ think we're endoskeletons. I don't, uh, I don't know how he could think otherwise…"

Mike nodded and continued his wait. He was anxious sitting back there, a million thoughts and theories running through his mind. Perhaps Freddy had had a realisation one night? Maybe someone had _told_ him? But who? A night guard? The manager? No, no, that couldn't be it. Freddy didn't listen to anyone (except, maybe, Bonnie). So…what? How? _Who?_

The sound of bells sounding out alerted Mike. The hours had gone by so quickly, it was like they were mere seconds in Mike's mind. Briefly, he wondered if that was because he was dead and therefore had a different sense of time than others or if it really was because he was so focused on other things. He was about to ask Phone Guy when the sound of panting and keys rattling interrupted his attempt. The two men strained their ears to listen as the door shut and was locked again. The night guard was gone, having survived another night. _Good._ Mike thought, _I'm glad. I didn't want him to get killed. Fazbear must be pissed._

"Alright, Junior. Go. It's your time now."

As soon as Phone Guy was finished, Mike leapt up and bolted for the doorway. He knew he didn't need to rush like he was, but he didn't want to waste time either. Mike hit the seal with his shoulder a few times before it budged and fell from the doorway. The ex-security guard quickly caught it before it could alert the animatronics and set it against the shelves.

"Mike…!" Mike turned back to Phone Guy, panting lightly in his adrenaline, "…Good luck. Uh - fill me in when you - when you get your answers."

Mike nodded, went to go, then turned back, "You could come with, y'know?"

Phone Guy shook his head, holding up a hand, "No. I have to stay here in case the kids come along. Don't want them to overhear or anything. Could be…bad."

Mike nodded, "Right." He lifted the piece of wall again and positioned it over the doorway, tilting his head to see Phone Guy still, "I'll come back." He promised and Phone Guy nodded. He knew he was being dramatic, but there was a chance Freddy wouldn't take lightly to someone questioning him on his secrets.

"Mike."

"Yeah?"

"Just remember what I said."

"Wha…?"

"These characters hold a special place in the hearts of children and we need to show them a little respect, right?"

Mike couldn't promise that. "…Okay." With that, Mike sealed the entrance to the Freddy Room and speed-walked to the door, throwing it open and stepping out into the dining area. Still panting lightly, he checked the stage. The animatronics were all gone. _Fast bastards…_ Mike thought bitterly, looking around the room. The animatronics were completely gone and none had heard Mike come out of the backstage area. For a moment, he considered himself lucky until he realised he now had the job of finding Freddy. That would waste some time, but now much. Still, time was of the essence.

Mike walked further into the room before his eyes fell upon Pirate Cove. Would it not be easier to ask one of the animatronics if they'd seen Freddy rather than look for the bear himself? That would be quicker, right? And - if there was anyone Mike was willing to ask - it'd probably be Foxy. He was the only one Mike had to determine a personality for and the one Mike would probably consider the least dangerous right now. The man jogged over to the closed curtains and whispered in, "Foxy? Hey, Foxy…!"

No reply.

Mike hesitated for a moment before daring himself to open the curtains. He slipped Freddy's fingers between them and pulled one gently to give himself a peephole. It was dark, but it was evident Foxy wasn't there. Mike huffed and went to go, then paused once something seemed to shine in the light he'd let in. A yellow something. For a moment, Mike mentally slapped himself for getting distracted, but curiosity got too great and he peeled back the curtains to let himself into the cove (after all, Foxy had _said_ he was welcome anytime, right?). The man stepped over to the yellow thing, hesitated, then picked it up. Squinting, he analysed the orb in his hands, then froze, "…Chica?"

It certainly looked like Chica, though something was off. This one was a brighter, more vibrant yellow than the Chica he knew and had rosy sphere cheeks painted on. The beak was still there, but the eyes weren't. He turned it over in his hands. Plastic. It was made of plastic, and was only the head of what had to be an old animatronic. Mike raised a brow. Had they had plastic ones? Since when? And why did Foxy have -

"What ye be doin', lad?!"

Mike almost jumped out of his Freddy suit as he whipped around, only to suddenly be brought back and slammed against the back wall of the cove by Foxy, who was now holding his hook dangerously close to Mike's throat. With his other arm, he snatched back the Chica head and cradled it to his chest, "How dare ye come in here withou' me knowledge?! Sneakin' in here like ya were and snoopin' around - this sea dog oughta make ya walk the _plank_ for tryin' t' steal Captain Foxy's _greatest treasure!_ "

"W-Wait!" Mike exclaimed, tilting his head back to avoid the hook, "I-I wasn't trying to steal - I was just looking for _Freddy!_ "

"Well he ain't here!" Foxy answered immediately, "An' ye had no right t'…to…" The fox seemed to deflate as his eyes fell upon the plastic Chica head. A sort of sad look in his eyes, his ears drooped and he sighed wistfully, "Aye…I…be sorry, lad…Ol' Foxy didn't mean t' get so riled up at ye…" Mike grew less tense as Foxy stepped back, holding the plastic head to his chest and hugging it gently. Mike looked him up and down, unsure of what to make of this, and Foxy looked to him again, "Ye said ye were lookin' fer Fazbear?"

"Uh…y-yeah…"

Foxy shrugged as he walked forward and placed the Chica head down where Mike had found it, "Aye…I ain't seen him. Might wanna ask ol' Bonnie, though - the lad would know where tha' bear's ventured off to."

"Uh - I will. Thanks." Mike side-stepped the fox to go to the curtains, hesitated, then turned back, "Uh…Foxy. S-Sorry for coming in here and, uh, touching your stuff…"

"It be fine, lad."

That was all Foxy offered on that, so Mike exited the cove, spinning around just in case Foxy were to pounce on him or anything. He seemed pretty mad that Mike had touched his things, so Mike didn't want to take any chances with it. After all, with all those teeth…well, Mike wouldn't be surprised if Foxy had been the cause of that 'Bite of '87' thing that Phone Guy had mentioned. Even if he _was_ dead, Mike didn't want to risk getting bitten like tha -

"Mike Schmidt!"

"Oh - holy SHIT!" Mike yelped as he jumped again, then whirled around, only to find the very bunny he was looking for standing right before him. The ex-security guard looked him up and down, frowning deeply, then put a hand over the place his unresponsive heart lay, "Jesus! Gotta get you a fucking _bell!_ "

"Oh…" Bonnie hovered one hand over his bow tie, considering it, then asked cheerfully, "You think it'll look good?"

"I - well, at least we'd know where the _fuck_ you are!"

Bonnie stared at him, blinked twice, then smiled and tilted his head in amusement, "You talk funny, Mike Schmidt!"

Mike's eyes narrowed slightly, confused, then he shook his head, "Whatever. Look - Bonnie."

"Hm?"

"Do you know where Freddy is?"

"Freddy?" Mike swore he could see Bonnie's ears twitch for a moment, just as they had done on the night he had seen the two robots cuddling in the back room. It made Mike cringe slightly. They'd probably done that earlier, while he was in the Freddy Room. He felt a little sick. "Still in the office, I think."

"The office?" Mike repeated. The night guard had survived, hadn't he? Mike had heard him! What was Freddy doing _there?_

"Yup. Checking some stuff out, I think. I dunno. He says he likes it there." Bonnie gave a shrug.

Mike looked away, thought about it, then nodded once. It was probably best they met in the office to discuss this anyway. He didn't want the rest of the robots to gang up on him. One, he could probably handle. Four? No way. "Alright. Thanks, Bonnie." Mike turned from him and began to make his way down the west hall before he was stopped again.

"Uh…Mike Schmidt?"

"Hm?" Mike turned back, "Yeah?"

Bonnie was twiddling his fingers nervously, hopping from one foot to the other. His gaze was directed to the floor, "Freddy hasn't made ya sad, has he? It's just…he's been so grumpy and serious lately. I can usually make him laugh pretty good, but…he hasn't even cracked a smile…" Bonnie's ears flopped over as his brow creased. Mike thought he looked outright miserable, even as he lifted his gaze back to him, "So…he hasn't made you sad, has he…?"

Mike considered telling Bonnie that, yes, Freddy had upset him. Somewhere in his mind, that one answer led to Bonnie confronting the bear, which led to a fierce argument, which then led to the couple breaking up. Breaking up Freddy and his precious honey bunny? Good revenge right there. Maybe a starter for whatever else Mike could think of to get back at the bear. This little plan of his was almost carried out as Mike opened his mouth to reply, then he paused. If he told Bonnie that Freddy had upset him, he bet Bonnie would feel compelled to join him in confronting the bear. Then that would mean Mike wouldn't get his answers and there was a higher chance of Mike getting ganged up on. That would suck. He'd promised Phone Guy he'd question the bear too, and Mike wasn't one to break promises. "…No, Bonnie. No, he hasn't upset me. I just… _really_ need to talk to him…"

"O-Oh…" Bonnie clearly realised he missed an opportunity to talk to his…what? Boyfriend? Were they boyfriends? Mike supposed they were. "Alright, then. Be careful with him, though. Like I said, he's been all grumpy and serious lately…"

"I will." Mike nodded, then turned his back on the bunny to walk down the west hallway. As he went, it occurred to him he'd been speaking to Foxy and Bonnie as though they were people. He felt a little nauseated at the very thought. They weren't people, they were robots, yet Mike had been conversing with them as though they were co-workers or… _friends._ And they were certainly _not_ his friends. But…apologising to Foxy for touching his stuff? Thanking Bonnie for telling him Freddy's location? Weird. He surely hoped he wasn't losing his mind like the other Freddies.

It was only a short walk to the office, but it felt like a hike to the ex-security guard. Though he had a somewhat grasp of what Freddy's personality was like, Mike still couldn't tell exactly how Freddy would react upon knowing someone else was aware of his secrets. Even if he did have the mind of a child, there was still a chance of violence, right? After all, threatening someone's life for upsetting a friend wasn't exactly childish, was it? No, he couldn't treat Freddy like a child. He was an adult. He was a monster.

Finally, Mike stepped into the doorway of the office, his unresponsive heart squeezing. Freddy Fazbear hadn't noticed him as he grumbled to himself, cleaning off the screen of the tablet with his fist. "Never keep this clean…" Mike heard him mutter as he set the tablet back, then the bear cast a glance at the spot the fan was supposed to be sitting in (in Mike's distant memory, he remembered he'd left it with Phone Guy). He shook his head slightly, then his ears twitched as he heard footsteps to his left. Freddy whirled around, then relaxed upon seeing Mike there. He was in the office now; they both were. Time to get down to business. "Mike."

"You know, don't you?" Mike said coldly and without hesitation. Who knew how much time he had until the day staff turned up? Better make this quick.

"Know?" Freddy repeated, "Know what?"

"Don't play dumb with me. You practically confessed it the other night." He scowled, "You know I'm human, don't you?"

Both knew the accusation - the _truth_ \- was coming up, but that didn't stop the silence from being picked up again as Freddy stared at Mike and Mike stared at Freddy. As a robot, Freddy's emotions were hard to identify, so Mike didn't quite know what to make of the look he was giving him now. If he had to call it something, though, it'd be…bored. After a moment, Freddy turned his back on him, "I don't have time for this…"

"Oh, no, you don't!" Mike shouted as he leapt forward and slammed a fist to the door button. The right door came flying down, almost squashing Freddy's toes as it did so and effectively trapping the bear in the office. It was ironic, wasn't it? Usually, he was trying to keep Freddy _out._ Freddy didn't react, simply stared at the metal door. Time was up, he supposed. Mike's fist probably would've hurt if he was still in his old body. "You know, don't you?! You know I'm human! TELL ME!"

There was another few moments of silence and, just as Mike prepared himself to shout again, Freddy sighed and turned his head to him, "Yes. _Okay?_ I do know."

"Know _what…?_ " Mike growled out. No, no, he wanted this son of a bitch to _say it._

"I know you're human, Mike."

"And before? When I was in here? Did you know I was human _then?_ "

"…Yes."

Truthfully, Mike didn't know what he expected from that question. He was certain Freddy knew he was human since stuffing him, but knowing _all along?_ With a suddenness that made Mike wonder why it was even there, the last image Mike had seen before dying came to mind: Freddy Fazbear's smug face. Thinking back on that, he knew now why he'd been so smug: he'd managed to kill another one. How proud he must've been. Mike shook his head as he took a couple of steps away from Freddy, "…You son of a bitch…" Freddy didn't reply, though he had the decency to turn around and face him properly. "You son of a…Did you know about the others, then?"

"Others?"

"The night guards! All of them! Did you know about _them too?!"_

"Yes. I did."

 _No…No…_ "…And Phone Guy…?…You knew him too…?"

"Phone Guy?" Freddy thought about it. Did they have a man running the phones around here? He didn't think so. Oh - wait. Hang on. Perhaps…was Mike referring to the man he'd spoken to at the beginning of each night? Freddy swore he could hear a phone ringing all those times…

" _The night guard before me._ " Mike growled out through gritted teeth, like he was offended Freddy didn't know him. Maybe he was. Mike had always been - what? - protective over Phone Guy since he heard the calls. Something about him made Mike have a mad respect for him. Nobody was allowed to talk smack about him while Mike was around, lest they end up like that kitchen worker who'd known him before he died - or 'went missing' - and had called him a freak in Mike's presence. Hm. Come to think of it, Mike still hadn't paid for that window…

"Oh. Him. Yeah. I knew about him too."

Something about Freddy knowing Phone Guy was human made it all worse and Mike suddenly felt ten times angrier. Unable to control himself, Mike punched the bear in the stomach. Freddy lurched forward at the force, fell back onto the door, then glared at Mike. Mike briefly wondered if that'd even hurt. Maybe it just surprised him. "Hey!"

"You BASTARD!" Mike roared at him, not even caring if the others heard. Let them. "YOU SON OF A _BITCH!_ You KNEW ABOUT THE NIGHT GUARDS! YOU KNEW WHAT YOU AND YOUR LITTLE BUDDIES WERE _DOING,_ YET YOU KEPT IT UP! YOU _PURPOSELY DID THAT! YOU KILLED PEOPLE ON PURPOSE! YOU FUCKING_ _ **BASTARD!**_ _"_ Mike grabbed hold of Freddy's shoulder and pulled him off of the door to shout in his face, " _YOU HUNTED THOSE PEOPLE DOWN AND YOU KILLED THEM! YOU KILLED THEM ALL, FREDDY! PHONE GUY - YOU KILLED HIM TOO! HE'S MY FRIEND AND YOU -_ " He didn't let himself finish that off, as he suddenly straightened up and threw another fist at Freddy, this time aiming for his face.

What he hadn't expected was for Freddy to catch his fist in one hand, gripping his side with the other.

All air flew out of Mike's dead lungs as he panicked, but Freddy was already stepping forward, making Mike step back in some morbid, threatening dance. Freddy glared down at him as they walked, "We don't condone violence at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza." The bear said lowly as he tried to push Mike out of the office, but the dead man held his ground and slammed his heels to the floor to stop himself moving.

"Get the _fuck off!_ " Mike wrestled his hand out of Freddy's grip, stepping back to avoid his other hand. He held his right hand in his left, then scowled at the bear, "You condone _murder_ though, don't you?!" Freddy's eyes narrowed, but Mike went on, "You condone killing random people, don't you?! Huh?! Is _that_ condoned at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza?!"

"No!" Freddy replied almost immediately.

"Then what's YOUR FUCKING EXCUSE, HUH?! WHAT MAKES _YOU_ SO SPECIAL?! WHY DO YOU DO IT, FREDDY?!" He shoved the bear, " _TELL ME WHY YOU -"_

"I DO IT FOR THE KIDS!"

That had been the last thing Mike expected Freddy to say. The ex-security guard's anger subsided for just a moment as he took a couple more steps back. His face contorted in confusion, "…What…?"

"You've met them, haven't you? Those children." Freddy's tone had changed entirely. It was now soft and gentle, like he was silently apologising for shouting at Mike in the first place. The bear looked away from Mike, his brow furrowed.

"The little ones with the masks?" Describing them as 'missing' or 'dead' seemed pretty wrong at this point.

"Yeah."

"Yeah. I met 'em. Cute kids."

"They are, aren't they?" Freddy allowed a little smile to creep onto his face.

"…That little girl seems to really like you…"

"Yeah…"

Mike looked him up and down. Freddy seemed like an entirely different thing now. Just before, he was the killer that Mike wanted to cut down in his prime. Now…well, what was he now? Mike just didn't know. "So…what, then? What's murdering people got to do with those kids?"

Freddy looked to Mike, expecting the question, then he sighed and looked away again. This was clearly a topic Freddy didn't like to discuss, but Mike didn't give a damn. It was time for answers. "…You know how they got here, don't you…?"

"Some guy -"

"Yeah." Freddy interrupted. He didn't need to hear it again. "Yeah." He sucked in a breath (how? He didn't have lungs…) and let it out again in what was probably the most depressed sigh Mike had ever heard. "…I was there, you know. We all were. It happened at the old location, and we all saw our shares…of really bad things…We all just…snapped. I don't really remember much about the night afterwards, but I remember the kids and…him. After that place was shut down and we were brought here, I found out that the kids followed us here. I don't think they had a choice. Whatever that man did, he - I don't know - he made it so they can't go far. They were so scared…" Freddy took a moment. Mike let him have it. "…After that, Bonnie, Chica, Foxy and I said we would take care of them. They couldn't go anywhere, so we swore we'd protect them and do whatever we could to make their… _stay_ here more bearable. They liked it enough and we played with them whenever we could. They'd never come out if anyone else was around, at first. Took them a while to…to accept everything. Then you guys started showing up.

"It wasn't you specifically, Mike. It was the clothes. They don't know what the guy who…who did that to them looked like; neither do I. All they remember are purple clothes. Our employees wear purple uniforms, so we know it was one of them, but…we just don't know which one. We call him the Purple Guy around here. " The bear still didn't lift his gaze to Mike; he just shook his head. "I couldn't risk it, Mike. I couldn't. They were so scared of the night guards and I…I couldn't risk it being him. So I did whatever I could to keep the kids safe…which, admittedly…was killing all of you. But you've gotta understand, Mike…Everything I do, I do for those kids."

The two were plunged into silence all over again. Freddy seemed to have finished his story and was now waiting for Mike's reaction, which was still pending. The ex-security guard stared at Freddy, feeling too much of a mixture of emotions to really do or say anything but stare. The Incident of the Missing Children had probably been the biggest event to ever occur in all of Freddy Fazbear's Pizza's history, other than the Bite of '87. It had hit Mike hard when he met them, even more so when they introduced him to the man they called Hello - he just had no idea that it hit the animatronics just as hard. He supposed it made sense, really. This place was supposed to be a safe haven for children. How would someone feel, knowing they were supposed to protect children and keep them happy, only for some bastard in purple clothing to take that all away? He couldn't imagine it.

It didn't help Mike any, the way Freddy had worded it: everything he did, he did for those children. They were Freddy's official responsibility and, if anything happened to them, the bear wouldn't know what to do. He killed innocent people in an attempt to subdue the guilty one; to find him and get revenge for everything he'd done. That all sounded far too familiar to Mike, and it seemed the voice in his head agreed. _Everything I do, I do for Mom...even if it's illegal…_ She'd been made his responsibility since her illness hit and her mind warped. If anything happened to her, Mike Schmidt would break. He couldn't deny, either, that if someone dared hurt his mother, he'd hunt them down and make them pay. By the sound of it, Freddy had already broken the first time something happened to those kids. He couldn't break again. He just couldn't do it.

"…And the others…?…Do they remember that time…?"

"No." Freddy shook his head. "…I think they forced themselves to forget it. Didn't process in their servos or something. They don't even acknowledge those kids are ghosts. They just…I don't know what they think of them in that aspect. I've never brought it up. I wouldn't know what to say."

"So…they really do think we're just endoskeletons, then…"

"Yeah."

And, suddenly, the image Mike had had of Freddy's smug face when he died was different. The smugness was still there, but now he knew it was there for an entirely different reason: he thought he'd caught Purple Guy. He thought he'd completed his mission of bringing the murderer to submission. He thought he'd made the kids happy. Suddenly, Freddy Fazbear didn't seem as much of a monster anymore. He actually seemed more…human. Especially more than the others.

Mike's gaze lowered to the floor as he thought about it. What Freddy was doing seemed pretty noble in one aspect, but in another…? It still seemed…horrible. "…I guess that's pretty noble…"

"Thanks…"

"…But that still doesn't excuse what you've done." Freddy still didn't look at him, though Mike saw the confusion on his face as he raised his eyes back to him. "Killing innocent people is still wrong. I can't condone that, Freddy, I can't. Those people back in that room are trapped and scared and out of their minds - and it's because of you. I can't tell you how scared I was when I woke up in that backstage room. I was so confused and angry and sad. And, if you think I can just get over what you've done, then you're wrong. I can't, Freddy. We had people out there, damn it. Families. Phone Guy…has a daughter, you know. He told me. Saw her on weekends. Turning six in three months. He still thinks he can get outta here and get a present for her. He has an ex-wife too. He said he doesn't hate her or blame her for ditching him. It was your fault, after all. He was so scared you'd get someone else that his marriage was put up for sacrifice." Mike shook his head. "You _ruined_ his _life._ My friend - you ruined his life…! His marriage…in exchange for someone else's life.

"And my mom - lemme tell you about her. She's sick, y'know - some shit I can't pronounce - and I used to take care of her. Who's gonna take care of her now, huh? My dad's dead and I haven't got any siblings. We only had each other and only focused on moving forward. Now, cause of you, I'm stuck here and I'm _wasting._ Everything's _wasted._ "

"What's wasted?"

"Energy. Time… _Life._ "

He saw Freddy's fists squeeze momentarily. His eyes shut too - was he feeling guilty? Good. Freddy finally lifted his gaze to Mike, and he had to take a pause. In his eyes, the Freddy suit was gone. Mike Schmidt the human being was standing before him. "…I knew you wouldn't understand. I'm doing it for the kids -"

"SHUT UP!" Mike snapped, his blue eyes burning. "I'm not gonna let you _rationalise_ this, you monster! Those people had _families,_ damn it, you've been toying with people's _LIVES!_ "

"'Toying with lives'?" Freddy repeated dangerously. "What? And Purple Guy _wasn't?_ How dare you. I've done everything I can to protect those kids! For all I knew, you WERE the Purple Guy! I wasn't gonna allow that to happen! I know you're sad, Mike, but -"

"Sad?!" Mike snapped, "'Sad' doesn't even _begin_ to describe all the _shit_ I'm feeling right now! You have _no idea_ how _confused_ and _angry_ I am! You know why? Cause you're not _human._ You're just a bunch of pieces of metal shoved into a bear suit! But me, Freddy? _Me?!_ I'm _real._ You have _no idea_ how that feels! All of this is just _wrong!_ All these _sacrifices and exchanges_ we've had to make because of _you!"_ Mike's fist curled around the section of his shirt that covered his unresponsive heart, "This job…in exchange for money…Money…in exchange for medicine… _Medicine…to save my mom's life. Mom's life…!"_ He suddenly raised his head to Freddy, scowling so hard the bear thought Mike's face had broken, " _I THOUGHT YOU CONSIDERED THIS A GAME!"_ In a flash, Mike whipped around to the desk, ripped something from the monitor and showed it to Freddy, " _Do you know who this is?_ " Freddy shook his head, so Mike took it from his view and stared at it himself, "…It's the one I told you about…" Pain flashed in Mike's tear-filled eyes and he shut them to avoid Freddy seeing, then he slammed the photograph to Freddy's chest with one hand, " _THIS IS MY MOM!_ "

As Mike's weak hand fell, so did the photograph. It danced and swayed on the air for a moment before Freddy caught it. The bear hesitated, in case Mike were to move again, then brought the picture up to his face. An old woman with curly grey hair and bright blue eyes behind brown glasses sat on a hideous yellow couch, grinning like there was nothing wrong in the world. She looked perfectly comfortable sitting their in her floral nightgown and white bathrobe. Freddy blinked as he stared at it, then paused and narrowed his eyes to get a closer look. It was difficult to see, but on her bathrobe was…his face. "…She's wearing one of those old pins we used to sell…"

"She's one of your biggest fans…" Mike muttered through his tears, "…Fuck knows why…"

Freddy looked from the picture to Mike, back to the picture, then back to Mike. For a moment, he took some time to truly look at the ex-security guard before him. Mike Schmidt was a young man, twenties at the very least. He was of average height, yet a little thin for a man of his age. There was still muscle on him; no doubt, Freddy thought, developed from the countless fights he'd obviously been in (judging by his right hook). His face was heart-shaped yet harsh and he had a very thin, barely noticeable scar just under his left ear. Mike's eyes were bright blue and his lips were chapped. He had his mother's nose. His hat must've come off when Freddy stuffed him in the suit, so his brown hair was free to be as scruffy as it liked. It was rather short around the sides; it collected at the front of his head - above and just right off the centre of his forehead - to make a quiff that stood up tall; like the tip was always stabbing the air. He was still wearing the Freddy Fazbear's Pizza uniform and it was like Freddy was being punched in the face as he looked at it. Purple shirt with black epaulettes, black tie, black trousers and shiny black shoes. Mike always had the sleeves rolled up; he had thin hairs on his arms and the skin of his hands was callus.

Freddy blinked a couple of times before he slipped the photograph into Mike's right hand, "…I really am…so, _so_ sorry for what we did to you, Mike…" Without warning, he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the human being, hoping it would count as a token of apology and friendship.

However, Mike didn't take it that way. He shoved Freddy away with a warning of "Get the fuck off of me…" and took a few steps back, "Don't you dare start treating me like one of your little _fans._ I'm not one, so don't act like I am. _Got it?!"_

Freddy watched him for a moment, expecting a punch, then he nodded. "Right."

Mike turned away from the bear and stared at the photo. He'd bring it back with him to the Freddy Room, he decided. Let Phone Guy see. Out of instinct, Mike lifted a hand to wipe away his tears, paused and gasped when he saw his skin, then glanced at Freddy. The bear stared in silence, so Mike supposed that was a sign he could see it too. The ex-security guard finished wiping his tears away, clutching his mother's photo in his right hand tightly, "…So…the others don't know, huh? That you kill people like this?"

"Not a clue."

"…Well…maybe I'll tell 'em."

If Freddy had a heart, it would've stopped then and there. "Don't." He said immediately. He couldn't let the others know. Not only would it destroy any and all trust between them, but it would ruin the animatronics' minds too. After all, he still remembered a little bit of _Bonnie's_ reaction to the children and…well…

"Why? So they don't see what a fucking _monster_ you are?" Mike sneered, turning to look at Freddy properly. "Yeah, I bet that'd turn out great, huh? I'd like to see it, to be honest." Mike's voice was beginning to rise all over again. After his last outburst, he didn't think it could do that anymore. "Bet Foxy would never come out of his cove then! Bet Chica would leave me alone - and every other night guard, for that matter!" Mike leaned forward to get in Freddy's face, "Maybe I'll tell your little HONEY BUNNY WHAT YOU'VE BEEN UP TO!"

Until then, Freddy had been perfectly content to remain civil with Mike, but hearing that made something snap. In seconds, Freddy grabbed Mike by his shirt, picked him off of his feet and slammed him onto the wall of the office. Unlike when Foxy had done this to him in the cove, Mike didn't show fear. He still scowled in Freddy's face as the bear roared, "YOU STAY AWAY FROM BONNIE!"

" _Freddy!_ "

Freddy jolted in shock, his anger melting away, then he whirled around in time to spot the aforementioned bunny move from his place at the window to the doorway. Freddy released Mike, let him drop, then stepped away as Bonnie entered the office, looking incredibly shocked and incredibly peeved. "B-Bonnie!"

"How could you _do that_ to _Mike Schmidt?!_ " Bonnie didn't wait for Mike to climb to his feet as he grabbed his shoulder and brought him in for an endoskeleton-crushing, yet very protective, hug. It took Mike a moment to realise Bonnie was protecting him with his own body.

"B-Bonnie, I…" Freddy rubbed the back of his head and tried to think of an excuse. "We…We were just playing…!"

"You were _rough-housing him!_ I saw!" Bonnie exclaimed back, holding Mike tighter. Freddy's jaw seemed to tense upon seeing it. Could animatronics get jealous? Mike supposed they could, considering the way Freddy was now glaring at him. Mike looked up at Bonnie. _Holy shit…they're acting like they're my parents…_ "How could you, Freddy?! Poor Mike Schmidt must've been so _scared!_ "

"I…I…" Freddy tried again, but nothing came of it.

Bonnie frowned deeply at him, then started escorting Mike to the door. "C'mon, Mike Schmidt…let's get you outta here…poor thing…"

As Bonnie led Mike out, the human looked over his shoulder at Freddy, who was looking back at him with some emotion Mike couldn't identify. He no longer knew if that was a glare or a pleading look Freddy was giving him. Either way, Mike responded with a frown of his own and turned back to the bunny leading him away. Bonnie took him out to the main room, where he sat Mike down on the stage. "I'm so sorry, Mike Schmidt." He said awkwardly, wringing his hands and looking very guilty. "I just…I dunno what's gotten into him lately…I didn't expect _that…_ I'm really sorry…" His ears flopped over.

Mike gulped. Since Bonnie wasn't reacting to him any differently than before, he guessed Bonnie hadn't overheard the complete conversation, nor could he see him as a human; just another stuffed Freddy suit. _Maybe only Freddy can…_ After all, Freddy claimed to be the only one who remembered what happened that day, so his AI must be greater than the others or something, right? Or maybe some paranormal crap was going down. Whatever it was, Mike was glad for it. He didn't need Bonnie asking questions. "It's…It's okay, Bonnie." (But it wasn't, was it?) "I'm…sure Freddy didn't mean it…" (Yes, he did).

Bonnie allowed a little smile to creep onto his face once he was sure Mike took no harm nor offence to what Freddy had done, then he gently removed his guitar from his back and handed it to Mike, "Here. Strum something while I go talk to Freddy." Mike took the guitar from him, marvelled at it (he always loved guitars), then looked up as Bonnie held out a paper plate, a box of arts and crafts supplies and a bottle of glue. "Or…make somethin' pretty." Mike let the guitar rest in his lap as he took the arts and crafts things from Bonnie, who gave an approving and surprisingly cheerful nod after he was sure Mike felt a bit better. It occurred to Mike that these were probably the only ways Bonnie knew how to comfort people, since he was built for children and all. He turned and walked between the tables toward the office, then suddenly shouted out (much to Mike's shock), "FREDDY FAZBEAR, YOU BETTER NOT MOVE A GEAR CAUSE I WANNA TALK TO YOU!" As he disappeared down the corridor, Mike heard the distant sound of one of the doors opening, "YOU BETTER NOT WALK OUT THAT DOOR - I CAN SEE YOU!" Suddenly, both doors were shut again, leaving Mike staring at the dark hallway in shock.

"…Holy _shit…_ don't piss off Bonnie…" He muttered as he automatically set the glue and box of supplies down, then picked out a piece of tissue paper and grabbed the bottle to deliver a bubble of glue onto one end. It took him at least three minutes of working on his paper plate Bonnie before he took a moment to think about it. "…What the fuck am I doing?" He questioned aloud, putting the plate aside. He'd pretty much finished anyway. Paper Plate Bonnie could go without a tissue paper bow tie. He picked up Bonnie's guitar and strummed it a little, realising that he'd never thought it had actual strings before. He assumed all the music the animatronics played was pre-recorded and played again and again or something like that. The guitar was just for show. _Hell. Nothing makes sense around here anymore._

Guitar had been one of the hobbies an old therapist of his had suggested and he found he actually quite enjoyed it. Learned how to play a few songs and made some random tunes of his own. For a short while, Mike had considered taking up a career in music, but finding a place as Freddy Fazbear's Pizza's night guard had distracted him from that. He wasn't _that_ skilled, anyway.

Suddenly, both doors to the office shot up and out came the sounds of stomping. Mike stared as Bonnie came into the light, dragging a disgruntled Freddy by the arm. He brought Freddy to Mike, who stared blankly, then folded his arms, "Freddy." He started. "I believe you have something to say to Mike Schmidt?"

Freddy didn't reply, so Bonnie gave him a little nudge. Freddy looked to Bonnie as though he'd just woken up, "Hm? Wha…?"

"You _have something to say to Mike Schmidt. Don't you, Freddy?_ " Bonnie asked through gritted teeth. Mike leaned away from him.

Freddy blinked, opened his mouth to argue, then sighed and rubbed the back of his head. He wouldn't look at Mike. "…Sorry, Mike Schmidt…"

"What for, Freddy?" Bonnie asked.

"…For…rough-housing you…"

" _And?_ "

"…Yelling at you…" Bonnie nodded, satisfied, and Freddy tilted his head as to avoid Mike's gaze even more.

"Uh…" Mike honestly didn't know what to say, but he had a feeling he and Freddy's conversation wasn't over. "…It…It's okay, Freddy…" (No, it really wasn't).

Freddy raised his gaze a little to look at him and Mike found himself staring back. No. The conversation wasn't over. Bonnie, however, hadn't noticed. "Good. There. Everyone's friends again, right?" Freddy and Mike nodded in unison, though their frowns didn't drop. "Good! That's what we like! Now, I'mma go see if there's anything else to clean up around here." He turned to go, then suddenly whipped around, "Hey." Freddy jolted and looked at him. Bonnie glared and pointed to his eyes with two fingers, then moved them around to Freddy's. "I got my eye on _you,_ mister." Freddy nodded obediently, so Bonnie turned again and left the way he'd come.

There were a few moments of silence, in which Mike and Freddy silently agreed to wait until Bonnie left, then Mike looked to Freddy, "…Don't piss off Bonnie, huh?"

Freddy sighed and shook his head, "He means well, but…uh."

"Yeah."

The awkward silence returned, lingered for a few moments, then Mike spoke up, "…I won't tell them."

"Huh?" Freddy's head shot up so quickly, there was a chance he'd snapped his neck, "You won't?"

"…Nah. I doubt they'd believe me anyway."

Freddy opened his mouth, closed it, then moved over and sat beside Mike on the stage. He tilted his head to try and see Mike's face, obviously still seeing him as a human being, "…What's brought this decision on, then? You seemed pretty determined when you threatened me like that back there…"

Mike gripped the stage with both fists. "…I don't agree with your methods, Freddy. I really don't. I don't even think Purple Guy would come back here if he knows the kids are dead and dealt with, so I think you're safe on that note. You've killed lots of people, and that's really not okay…But, fuck it. I can't stop it, can I? Your little buddies probably wouldn't even believe me, let alone people outside. They'll all still think they're endoskeletons, and I doubt even you can stop them doing what they're doing. Just…try to stop, okay? I know you wanna protect the kids, but there's different ways you could do it." Freddy didn't reply. "Besides, I'm not saying that's a promise." Freddy's eyes widened and Mike turned his head to look at him, "I'll at least try to tell 'em if it all gets too much. Or if you piss me off. So. Just watch your back, huh, Fazbear?" Freddy stared for a moment, looked like he wanted to argue, but nodded all the same. The two sat there in silence, turning their heads to look away from each other.

Freddy looked over at Mike again, showing no reaction to the other figures now in the room. "…I know he'd appreciate that too…"

"Hm?" Mike looked to Freddy for an answer, then followed his line of sight when he realised he wasn't looking at him. "Holy _fuck!_ " Mike blurted out, jumping an inch or two in the air. Beside him, on the floor, was Golden Freddy. He was forever in his slumped position, mouth open and eyes soulless.

"Hey, brother." Freddy said. Golden Freddy said nothing.

Mike leaned forward a little to try and see Golden Freddy better. The yellow bear didn't respond at all; it was almost like he was frozen in that state. "…Hi…"

"He won't respond." Freddy spoke up, "He never does. He hasn't since…"

Mike nodded. Freddy didn't need to finish that. "…He used you, didn't he…?" He muttered to the empty costume, despite knowing it wouldn't respond. "Golden Freddy…I'm really sorry for what he did to you…" There was a silence, in which Mike took that as Golden Freddy processing what he said. He might've been mute, but he was still… _there,_ right? "You killed Phone Guy, didn't you?"

" _Mike_."

"You did, didn't you? That was you on the phone; just before it cut off." Nothing. "You bastard." It was an insult, but nevertheless gentler than the times with Freddy and the others. Mike went to turn away, then paused as he realised where he'd heard about Golden Freddy before. The children. They'd said there was another boy around here somewhere, and that he hung around 'Uncle Bear'. Well, if Freddy was Papa Bear, then Uncle Bear…

The ex-security guard leaned forward even more to look around Golden Freddy. He almost fell off of the stage; the child was that small. He was nestled against Golden Freddy's side, clinging to him for dear life. Judging by what the Freddy girl had said, he'd been there for a while. He was a tiny little thing, thin and pale, with blond hair that stuck up at odd angles. He was dressed in a white shirt and a black bow tie. His black shorts were held up with little elastic braces. Mike imagined his mother had made him wear those clothes; no kid in their right mind would. A dapper little thing, he wore a Golden Freddy mask on his face. "…Hey, there…"

"He won't respond either." Freddy spoke up. "Hasn't since he got here." As Mike moved off the stage to get a better look, Freddy warned, "Be careful with him, Mike. He's blind."

Mike stopped where he was, not wanting to alarm the boy. No wonder he was so scared; no sense of sight meant the boy had to rely on his other senses, such as hearing. He probably didn't even know where he was. That explained why he hung around Golden Freddy so much; he didn't speak. "…It's alright, kiddo…I'll never hurt you…" The boy didn't respond, so Mike sat back on the stage beside Freddy. Eventually, he was sure, Golden Freddy would go on his own. He very often did.

Freddy fiddled with his hands to break the tension and Mike rested his elbows on his knees. Quite frankly, he was done with all this serious, paranormal crap. "…So…Bonnie, huh?"

"Hm?"

"You two." He held two fingers up, then put them together, "…A thing."

"Oh. Yeah."

"Since when?"

"1987."

"Holy shit. I can't even keep a girlfriend for more than a couple o' months."

"Bonnie isn't a girl."

Mike raised a brow, "That your way of suggesting I try a guy?"

"It's really not up to me, Mike. You should try harder."

"I tried as hard as I could, damn it. Did fuck all."

Freddy turned and peered at him closely, then shook his head and muttered, "You talk funny, Mike."

Mike frowned at him. Bonnie had said the same thing. "What do you -"

"Papa Bear!"

Mike and Freddy whipped around to look as the Freddy girl darted out of the backstage room, her pigtails bouncing as she did so. Freddy smiled widely and held out his arms, "Bear Cub!" The little girl leapt up into Freddy's lap, where he collected her and held her close as she laughed. Mike watched. These kids really did love the animatronics, didn't they? The Foxy girl seemed pretty excited the other day when Phone Guy had suggested she go and see Foxy, and the Bonnie boy loved Bonnie so much that he had hugged one of the rabbit's empty heads. He imagined the Chica boy loved Chica quite a bit to get so defensive over what species she was supposed to be. Mike's eyes followed the Freddy girl's little hand as she reached up, took hold of Freddy's nose and squeezed. A honking sound made her giggle, while Freddy just looked embarrassed.

Before Mike could comment, the little girl looked to him, "Oh! Hi, Mister!"

"Hey, kiddo." He reached across and ruffled her hair.

She giggled at him, then blinked and pointed toward the door leading to the backstage area, "I think Hello misses you, Mister! He sure looked lonely when me and the others went to go see 'im!"

"Hello?" Freddy muttered in confusion, looking to Mike for confirmation that this guy was okay. He didn't want his kids hanging around with just anyone, y'know.

"Yeah." Mike stood up, "To be honest, I miss him too. I'll go see him now. Thanks." He went to go back to Phone Guy. He wouldn't believe what Mike had to tell him now! After a moment, he turned back, "Hey! Papa Bear!" Freddy jolted and looked up, "You're upsetting Bonnie, by the way."

"I…what?"

"You're upsetting him. He says you've been all grumpy and stuff lately."

Freddy thought about it, then groaned a little and rubbed the back of his head. Ugh, he hadn't even realised he was being so cold to poor Bonnie. He'd make it up to him later. He faltered, then called to the retreating ex-night guard, "Wait! Mike!"

Mike turned back, standing in the doorway to the backstage room, "Hm?"

"…Give Chica a chance." Freddy said gently, "She's crazy about you…"

Mike blinked, looking away to think about it. He hadn't even thought about her recently, to be honest. He still hadn't apologised for shouting at her either… "…Right." He retreated into the backstage room, shutting the door behind him. He opened the doorway to the Freddy Room and stepped inside, only to almost jump a foot in the air.

"Mike!" Phone Guy called out, sounding delighted, "Hey! How did it go? What happened?"

Mike smiled and approached him. The kids were all gone by now, so Mike was free to discuss all the stuff that Freddy had told him.

And that was exactly what he did.

He relayed the entire thing to Phone Guy; everything. He told him of the incident with Foxy in Pirate's Cove, of Bonnie mentioning Freddy's behaviour, and Freddy - oh, he told him _everything_ about what happened with Freddy. Mike repeated everything Freddy had told him, from the day the animatronics witnessed 'really bad things' to the promise Freddy had made to protect them. Phone Guy was silent throughout the majority of the story, offering only a couple of gasps and the odd 'mm-hm' here and there. Mike didn't know whether to question Phone Guy's lack of true surprise or not; this guy was still considered the expert of the restaurant. Not much could surprise him after all the years he'd worked there. When Mike had finally finished, Phone Guy sat back against the wall, taking in everything and picking it apart in his mind. Mike let him have his time. "…Wow." was all Phone Guy said when he was done.

"Yeah…" Mike muttered, sitting down next to him.

"…I'm…I'm actually not very surprised, to, uh, to be honest. Freddy and the others have always been protective of the kids. I saw that as soon as I was put back here. The kids all love 'em too."

Mike nodded. There lay a question on his tongue that he was dying to ask, but he hesitated. It wasn't something you asked your idol, nor your friend. Still, it had to be asked, so Mike gathered up any courage that remained in his gut. "…Do you remember who the killer was…?"

Silence met him and Mike shut his eyes in guilt. He shouldn't have asked. Phone Guy had already warned him about how little they spoke of that incident; he had to stop bringing it up. Mike opened his mouth to apologise, but Phone Guy beat him to it. "No. No, I don't. I remember it was someone on our day staff. I used to know his name, but…after, uh, after what happened…I forced myself to forget him. We…We used to be friends, y'see, and I…felt so angry…" Phone Guy shook his head, like he was trying to forget everything else to do with that man. Mike rested a hand on his shoulder. Phone Guy looked to him, then sighed. "I wouldn't be able to help Freddy even if I wanted to…"

Mike sighed through his nose. No way would he help Freddy kill innocent people, but the guilty one? Screw it, he'd done enough illegal stuff in his time; one more wouldn't matter. "…Golden Freddy remembers you, I think."

"Does he? Hehe. That's nice."

Mike let a little smile onto his face, but it dropped almost as soon as it arrived. There was one more question to be asked and one more slice of information to be had; one more piece of complete this puzzle. "…Freddy still hasn't explained something, though…and I was hoping you would…"

"Hm? What is it, Junior?" Phone Guy asked.

"…How are we still here? Shouldn't we…I dunno…be in the 'great beyond' by now…?"

Phone Guy still appeared as a Freddy suit to Mike, so it was difficult to determine his expression, "…Do you not remember, Mike…?"

"…Remember what?"

"I'm not surprised. No one really does in the beginning." Phone Guy shook his head. "There's one animatronic - or… _thing_ that you don't know about, Mike…"

"What…?" Mike's voice was small.

Suddenly, Mark came to life, grabbing at the forehead of his Freddy head. Mike whipped around to him, face contorted into panic. "What was _that?!_ Ahhhgh…I didn't even get a good look at it - it had a _face…!_ " He shouted in terrified panic, before hugging his tiny box to himself and slumping back over.

"A _face…?_ "

"Think back, Mike." Phone Guy said gently, "I know it'll be difficult and I'm sorry for asking this of you, but think back to when you died…Think back, Mike…What happened after you were stuffed?…Think back, Mike…"

Mike did as he was told, lowering his head to think carefully. It was frustration that made him shut his eyes, though that seemed to help. His body suddenly felt light and he instinctively shut his fists as he felt himself drifting.

" _Is this him?"_

" _Mmmm…"_

" _Take your time, Bear Cub. I know it's hard, but just…think for a second. Is this the guy that…that hurt you all?"_

"… _No."_

" _No?"_

" _No, Papa Bear. He's too short. The other guy was…he was really tall!"_

"… _Alright. You can go now. That's…all I wanted to know."_

" _Okay, Papa Bear."_

 _Footsteps._

"… _I'm so sorry, night guard…for what we did to you…"_

 _A door closing._

Mike flinched and cringed, gritting his teeth in both malice and desperation. If he was 'alive' to hear that, then what _the hell had brought him ba -_

 _Mike Schmidt opened his eyes for the first time in forever. He slowly lifted his head, still drowsy and half-asleep, but the sight that he was met with made him jump; waking up instantly._

 _Before him was a white face, unlike anything he had ever seen before. Its face had almost entirely blended in with the darkness and was stuck in an eternal smile as it stared at Mike with its black and white eyes._

 _Mike felt himself hyperventilate as he tried turning his head to escape it, but the thing followed his movement; dragging itself seemingly through the air to forever remain in Mike's face. Mike tried turning his head the other way, but it still followed. He tried a half-turn, but it knew what he was doing and stopped when he stopped. Mike felt a scream in his throat, but he couldn't get it out. His heavy breathing made no sound either. All he could do was stare as this thing stared back._

 _Suddenly, it seemed to frown at him, then it turned away and slithered back into the shadows like a ribbon in the wind. Mike didn't get a chance to check if it'd gone; he was unconscious as soon as it had left his line of sight._

Mike snapped back into reality and threw his back into the wall, his head hitting it with a force that should've knocked him out. He panted heavily in panic, "What the FUCK is THAT?!"

Phone Guy shook his head, "I'll be honest…I never liked that puppet thing…It's always…thinking, and it can go anywhere."

"Puppet…?"

"It's from the old location. We used to have it in a room called Prize Corner. If a child was good, or it was their birthday, we'd send them to the Puppet and it'd give them a present. Usually a colouring book or something…" Phone Guy tilted his head, then shook it, "…Always did creep me out…"

"What's it doing _here?_ "

"It must've come along with us when we brought the old ones here. It…It _did_ disappear when we were scrapping the toy animatronics…"

"Oh, my God…" Mike finally got control over his breathing, "Is it _dangerous?_ "

"Not to people. Not during the day. But…"

"But _what?!_ "

"…We used to have a music box to keep it… _'asleep'._ Now, it…doesn't have that…" Mike's breath hitched. "But it should've attacked us ages ago, if that was the case. I…dunno what it's doing now."

Mike's entire body felt cold. All this time, he'd been terrified of the animatronics he'd seen during the night while working his shifts; Golden Freddy had the honour of being the scariest to him, as he was unpredictable and no doors could keep him out. But now Mike was even more scared of this place and even more worried for the night guard that had taken over his shift.

There was a sixth.

Who knew what it was capable of? Who knew what the thing that was always thinking could do to someone who had no idea it even existed? If Mike hadn't considered this place a slaughterhouse before, he certainly did now. "You think that thing put us in here?"

"It must have. We've all seen it."

"Oh, God…" Mike whipped around to Jordan, who had leaned forward suddenly, "…What _is that thing…?"_ She slumped over again, just as Mark had done before.

Mike stared at her for a few moments, then turned away to think. What reason would that thing have to put poor, lost souls into Freddy suits? Freddy and the gang put the _bodies_ in them, but the souls were all down to this Puppet thing. But why? Why would it do that? Mike thought back to what Freddy said earlier. There had to be a clue as to why -

There. His eyes widened. He'd heard it. Freddy had given him his clue: _"…I was there, you know. We all were. It happened at the old location, and we all saw our shares…of really bad things…We all just…snapped."_

"…It saw them too…"

"Hm?" Phone Guy looked at him. "What?"

"The Puppet saw the kids incident too. Freddy said _all_ of them saw stuff, so that must've meant the Puppet saw too. It's…working with him." The theory formed in Mike's mind all at once, he didn't have much of a chance to go over it. If he sounded like an idiot in front of Phone Guy, so be it. "It's working with Freddy. He puts us in these things, then the Puppet puts our - what? - our _souls_ in them, so that Freddy can…check…if it's the Purple Guy…If it is, then…he's left to Freddy and…a-and if it _isn't,_ then…"

"We're left here to rot." Phone Guy finished dully.

Mike's eyes stung with tears as his heart packed on enough weight to feel as though it was falling through his broken ribcage, "Y-Y'know what the worst part is…?"

"What?"

"Our own fucking boss was unintentionally helping with this. He puts our bodies in this room and we're left to the mercy of that _thing_ out there." He wiped his eye and looked to his companion, "Where does it even _go?_ "

"I have my theories. Most likely the vents."

"…Vents?"

"What? You didn't think we have vents?"

"…It can get in any time." Mike covered his mouth with his hands, "Oh, _God…_ "

"Mike, calm down." Phone Guy commanded gently.

"What if it _told_ Freddy to do this to us? What if it was its idea the entire time?"

"…Then I'd say that Puppet is smarter than I give it credit for."

"Oh, God…Oh, _God…_ "

It felt like forever that Mike sat there, rocking back and forth and mumbling to himself. He'd never been in such a state before; not when he died, not when he sobbed over his mother and not even when finding out about what Freddy was doing. His head hurt and his mind felt cluttered and damaged. Suddenly, his shoulders were grabbed and he was spun around. Mike screamed, his mind immediately identifying it as the Puppet, only to look into the empty eye sockets of Phone Guy's Freddy suit. "Mike, stay with me." His voice was strong, though there were laces of pleading in there. If Mike were to go insane like the others, Phone Guy would have no one left. "C'mon, Mike, snap out of it." He delivered a couple of pats to Mike's cheek. They were probably meant to be slaps, but Phone Guy had never had it in him to harm anyone; even if it was to break them from insanity.

Mike looked up at Phone Guy with panicked eyes, still panting slightly, "…Phone Guy…?"

"Yes, Mike?" Phone Guy asked gently.

"…I wanna go home."

Never witnessing a grown man in such distress, Phone Guy collected Mike into his arms for another hug, aware that doing so gave him back his human self. "Oh, I know, Mike…it's okay…it won't bother you, you're fine…C'mon, Mike, don't lose it. I'll tell you what, Junior, I'll make a deal with you: you keep me sane, and I'll do the same for you. Okay? Does, uh, does that sound good, Mike?"

"…Y-Yeah…"

"Alright. D-Deal done. Now, come back to me, Mike. Can't go yet."

"…Ph-Phone Guy…?"

"Yes?"

"…I am _so sorry_ for what they did to you…" Somewhere in the back of Mike's head, he'd always felt pretty responsible for Phone Guy's death. Meeting Phone Guy's murderer earlier had done nothing for his self-esteem.

"Oh, don't be silly, Mike. I'm just glad I could've kept you alive for however long I did. Twelve nights, right?"

"Y-Yeah…"

"That's really impressive, you know. But, uh, but I'm afraid I still hold the record!" He chuckled lightly. "…How old are you, anyway?"

"Twenty-four."

"Oh, God…you're so _young…_ "

"…Y-Youngest you ever had?"

"No. That's Jeremy. Not that he lasted very long…Not that…he died or anything."

"Then what happened to him?"

"Uh…Remember the Bite of '87...?"

"Holy shit…"

"Yeah…haven't heard from him since then…"

Mike settled in Phone Guy's hold for a few moments. It was refreshing having someone around that understood so much about his situation and actually _helped_ him with it. The people at his anger management had talked to him patronisingly and acted as though they understood, but they never would, would they? No. They wouldn't. Phone Guy still didn't understand that side of Mike's personality and he never would, but he could still understand Mike's fear and loneliness while being trapped in this place. Mike was glad Phone Guy was still around, even if it was in a Freddy suit. For him, Mike actually managed to drop his pride. If he'd been anyone else and they'd been in another situation, he would've refused to cry in front of them, much less let them hold him or even hug them in return. The Phone Guy was one of a kind, surely.

Even still, he needed something to distract him from all the crap that he'd found out today. It all happened so, so quickly that Mike wanted to run away and curl up in a ball. There had to be something that would take his mind off of it. There had to be.

…There was.

"…Phone Guy? I gotta get outta here…"

"Now, Mike, we talked about this -"

"No, I mean…out of this room."

"Why?"

"…I gotta say sorry to Chica…"


	5. A Good Eternity - You and I

**Awake and Alive**

 **I don** **'** **t own Five Nights at Freddy** **'** **s. Scott Cawthon does.**

 **Summary: Mike thought he understood everything going on at Freddy Fazbear** **'** **s Pizza, but, really, he has no idea. He never thought the animatronics might actually be capable of feelings, let alone have one of them actually** **…** **love him. Enough to turn him into one of them, perhaps?**

 **Notes: Takes place in an AU where the kids aren** **'** **t in the suits and the animatronics are just sentient robot** **…** **things**

 **Well, here's the last chapter, guys! I'm really grateful to all those who favourited, alerted and especially reviewed this story!**

…

Finding Chica had to be quick and it had to be easy. Like when finding Freddy, he asked the animatronics if they'd seen her. No luck with Foxy, he'd been in his cove all day. Golden Freddy was mute; no such luck with him either. Freddy was too busy with his cub to notice any of the other animatronics' positions (though Mike caught him continuously glancing at Bonnie). It'd been the purple bunny himself who had informed Mike on the whereabouts of the animatronic chicken, and Mike couldn't say he was surprised when he was told.

The kitchen was the only room that didn't have camera feed, only static, so there was no way for Mike to check on her there. Besides, he'd always had a feeling that was her favourite room, what with the bib and the amount of time she had spent in there during his shifts. Mike had thought Chica was just messing with him, clattering those pots and pans like that.

Mike had cringed when Bonnie had told him how Chica had been lately. As the bunny told it, she'd retreat to the kitchen straight after the customers were gone, return to the stage to mess with the night guard, then hide away in the kitchen again. She was most likely afraid that Mike would come out of the backstage area and catch her, so she went to the only place he wouldn't. Bonnie had been to see her a good fraction of the time, during which she lamented to him her unrequited feelings, while he offered her the best hugs he could possibly muster (according to the others, Bonnie gave the best hugs, so that must've meant the ones he gave Chica were pretty good).

After that, the dead man had gone as fast as he could to the kitchen; he didn't have much time left before the day staff turned up. He'd wasted enough time having his little breakdown in the Freddy Room with Phone Guy, who had promised to tell him more about the old restaurant when he got back. Mike had done research on Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, but not so far back as to know about the restaurant that had been open in 1987. Phone Guy explained very little to him before he left, including the Puppet's part at that place and the toy animatronics (which, apparently, were scrapped). There was still more to discover about this restaurant chain, back when he was safe and sound with his idol.

For now, he had a fucking robot chicken to apologise to.

Mike couldn't believe he honestly felt _this_ bad about upsetting Chica. To be honest, he hadn't been thinking about her much lately, since finding out Freddy's secrets. But all that was out of the way now, so he was pretty much forced to patch things up with her. After all, he was going to be… _living_ at this place for the rest of his days (unless some miracle occurred), so he might as well get used to all the robots attempting to be his friends (or more, in Chica's case). He was already pretty used to Bonnie, he supposed. So far, the rabbit was probably his favourite (if he _had_ to pick, anyways. He'd rather not because, oh, you know, they had KILLED HIM). Freddy? Still least favourite. No, wait. Maybe that Puppet thing was. If that was even an animatronic. Fuck knows what that thing was.

Nevertheless, Mike was already realising that he was talking to the animatronics as though they were people and honestly considering their feelings on things. If he didn't know any better, he would've said he was going insane. Good thing he knew better.

As Mike approached the kitchen, he listened out for any noises that would alert him to Chica's presence. He couldn't hear much in there; it was usually silent unless the robots were messing with cutlery. He did, however, hear the voice of the Chica boy. His voice was too quiet for Mike to really identify what he was saying, but he didn't hear Chica saying anything back. He imagined the boy was trying to comfort her. How thoughtful.

Hesitantly, Mike opened the kitchen door. He'd only been in the kitchen once and that was to wash his hands after he accidentally laid his palms on the dusty surface of the office's desk. It was a cramped little room that absolutely reeked of old pizza; no wonder Chica liked it here so much. The pots and pans she and Freddy liked to mess with during the night were hung on the walls, prepared for the staff that would show up _very soon._ There was barely any walking space between the steel cupboards and the ovens and stoves; Mike had to wonder how Freddy and Chica even managed to stalk their way through here. He had to question that later; time was running out.

She was so noticeable as she sat there, her yellow contrasting against the black and white tiles so much so that she stuck out like a sore thumb. Mike wondered briefly how long she'd sat there, back to the oven and knees to her chest. The Chica boy sat beside her, little hands on her arm as he tried to literally shake her out of her depressed stupor. Mike didn't see a chance of that any time soon; not from the kid, anyway. Hesitantly, he stepped further into the room, his feet surprisingly making no noise (she'd see him as the Freddy suit, after all). The Chica boy, nevertheless, seemed to somehow sense he was there and looked up as soon as he got close. Hurriedly (and with a great deal of struggle), he got to his feet and stuck his arms out at his sides, attempting to keep Mike from getting or even seeing Chica, "You can't be here!"

"Hang on, listen for a sec -" Mike tried to approach, but the boy jogged forward to stop him.

"No! Now…g-go away!"

"Hey, c'mon," Mike looked down at the boy; he looked ready to wet himself. "Just lemme talk to Chica -"

" _No!_ " The Chica boy pushed at Mike's legs, attempting to shove him out of the kitchen. His attempt did practically nothing, but Mike admired his attempt. "G-Go away!"

Mike frowned considerably. While he admired this kid for standing up to him (mentally, he told the boy he'd better back off cause Mike had already faced men twice his size and won), this was wasting precious and valuable time. For a moment, he considered pushing passed the kid or stepping over him or, in the very least, telling him to fuck off, but that wouldn't give him a good name with Freddy, so he resisted temptation. Even so, Mike felt his anger begin to rise, "Listen, kid, I need to talk to her before the people show up, so - if you don't get out of my way - then I'm gonna have to -"

"It's okay," Mike and the Chica boy jolted, then looked over at the chicken by the oven. She hadn't moved from her position at all, "Let him in."

"A-Are you sure…?"

"Yeah. It's okay."

The Chica boy suddenly looked unsure what to do, especially as Mike looked down at him smugly. He didn't mean to be so bad-tempered with the boy, but he was wasting his time by making him stand there doing nothing. The little boy gulped nervously in the presence of someone he knew could beat him up, looking back and forth between he and Chica. As he stared at the kid, Mike realised how much he must've frightened him. What was he doing? He, a grown man, practically bullying a little kid like that? God, what a prick. "…Hey." The kid looked up at him, still looking pretty ready to wet himself (ghosts couldn't do that…right?). Mike did his best to sound gentle, "Why don't you go…find the other kids? Uh - the girl with the Freddy mask is with the bear himself, if you wanna go…join them?"

The boy took one last glance at Chica before he nodded, looking like he was choking back tears, and scurried out of the kitchen quickly. Mike promised himself he'd apologise to him later, after he was done with Chica. Once the boy was gone, Mike's stomach flopped. He was alone with Chica now and time was running out.

It was now or never.

Mike gulped and approached her slowly; he hadn't done something like this in ages. Not since those two girls he'd lost due to his anger, and they were pretty crappy attempts in themselves. This was entirely different: this one was a _robot_ and…and…

…It wasn't hugely different at all, was it?

All were girls, he'd broken the hearts (or…servos - whatever) of each one and now he was here apologising. Admittedly, the difference being this one had _helped murder him_ , but…she hadn't known what she was doing. Like Freddy said, he was the only one who was aware of anything they did. Really, she more committed manslaughter than murder. Now, _Freddy - Freddy_ had committed murder. That wasn't Mike saying he forgave her or anything; he didn't and he never would. But, if he was going to be here for a while, then the least he could do was try and get along with everyone, right?

Right.

Mike stopped just beside her, cleared his throat awkwardly, then asked, "Uh…can I…sit down…?"

Chica didn't reply at first and Mike had the right mind to repeat himself, then she shrugged and muttered, "Sure."

Mike awkwardly took his place beside her on the floor, almost falling over the feet of his suit as he did so (still wasn't quite used to how bulky these things were). He cleared his throat again, sat back against the oven and…said nothing. Gee, he really wasn't good at this 'conserve time' thing, was he? Damn it. Mike forced himself to relax and focus on the matter at hand. He was a Schmidt, damn it. Schmidts didn't give up. "Listen…Chica…about the other day…I, um…" _Wow, real manly there, Schmidt._ "…sorry about…yelling at you like that…That - That wasn't alright…sorry…" _It was totally alright._

Chica didn't reply to him immediately. For a moment, she seemed to consider not replying at all, then she sighed sadly in the same manner as when he shouted at her, "…You don't love me…do you, Mike Schmidt…?"

"No." Mike said immediately. Realising he probably sounded a bit cruel, he added, "Sorry."

Chica gave that same sigh again, only this time she added a little whine at the end and rested her head in her folded arms. Mike's brow furrowed. Well, this was going well. One would think he would've at least practised what to say beforehand. The ex-night guard rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. Whether Chica noticed or not was up for debate, as she gave yet another sigh, "…Figures…"

"I'm sorry, Chica…" Mike said quietly. _Can't believe I'm fucking doing this…_

Chica moved as though she was shrugging, hugged her knees tighter, then said, "…Guess I kinda saw that coming…"

Oh, that was just sad. "Look, Chica…you're a…great girl and all…" _I really can't believe I'm fucking doing this…_ "But…you and me, we're…different…" _I could've gotten a part in a freaking romance movie. Jesus…_ "I mean, we're just… _too_ different…yeah…"

"We're both animatronics." Chica supplied, trying to find some loophole in what Mike had said. They weren't really all _that_ different, right? Mike Schmidt was just being silly!

"Uh…yeah…" Mike said awkwardly. He'd already told Freddy he wouldn't confess their secret to the others (ugh, God, it was _their_ secret). Doing so would just get the bear pinning Mike to the nearest wall again and Mike was pretty sure no amount of telling off from Bonnie would get Freddy off of him then. "But…uh…I'm a…different make than you. Yeah - uh, I was made elsewhere and, uh, it'd be frowned upon if we were to…" He trailed off, rubbing his head. "…Besides, honestly, I…don't love you…"

"But…could you?" Chica asked, a small spark of hope in her tone. "I-If we were the same make and all?"

He had to be careful how he worded this. Freddy had already warned him before about upsetting any of his pals; Mike _really_ didn't want to see what the bear had in mind as a punishment. Not that he was saying he was scared of Freddy or anything. Just wanted to avoid conflict. "…No. No, I don't think I could."

Nailed it.

Chica's face fell, "…Oh…" She hugged herself tighter, looking away from him again. If she were human, Mike was sure she'd be crying. Then again, if she were human, they probably wouldn't have even been in this scenario.

"Chica, I'm sorry, I just -"

"It's because I'm uninteresting, isn't it?"

"…What?"

Chica still wasn't looking at him, simply refused to, and there was a certain wobble to her voice that made Mike actually ponder if these things could cry. He doubted they could shed actual tears, but could they sob? Could they get so sad like that? He wouldn't know. He'd never watched any of their shows and never adjusted _that_ much when he modified their AIs on his later nights. If they could smile, laugh, growl and display other emotions in such identifiable ways, what would stop them from crying too? Mike's brow furrowed as Chica continued, "Everybody loves Foxy, Bonnie and Freddy! Foxy was _so_ popular when he was still performing; he put the rest of us to shame! Then he was put away and now _Bonnie's_ the most popular! I see _lots_ of kids dressed up as him when we're performing! Lots of kids as Freddy too, but I barely see _any_ of me! They all draw them too _and_ make the paper plates and _everything!_ I barely get that! It's not _fair!_ Everybody loved the _old_ Chica, back at the other place! _She_ got drawings! She was _so 'great'_ that Foxy still has her _stupid head!_ Just cause she was all _thin_ and _pretty…_ Then they brought me back out and they - everyone…just _didn't like me._ " She buried her face in to her arms; her shaking was evident enough to Mike that she was shedding imaginary tears.

Mike stared at her, unsure of how to approach this. Come to think of it, the drawings he'd seen children draw… _did_ tend to involve Bonnie quite a bit. Freddy too. The posters in the restaurant, he could understand, since the place _was_ named after Freddy, but…still. And wasn't it a kick in the nuts that he too had made Bonnie's likeness into a paper plate just minutes before? Yes. Yes, it was. Mike looked away awkwardly; she'd see him as a Freddy suit, but he still didn't want to give anything away in his face. He really couldn't believe this. Not only was he sitting on the floor with one of the things that had killed him, but he was actually…pitying them. _Feeling sorry_ for them, even. Mike gulped. He was going insane quicker than he thought he would.

Still, he supposed he could see where she was coming from. How hurtful must it have been to have to listen as another version of yourself got all the popularity you wanted when you weren't locked away in a room? How upsetting must it have been that, when you were finally let out of said room, one of your friends was still in the way of your popularity? Then, when that friend is put away, your other buddy does the same? Mike was sure Bonnie and Foxy hadn't meant it, probably didn't even realise they had in the first place, but it still must've hurt. The biggest hit to her self-esteem, though, must've been the part he played. Distantly, he recalled her telling him she'd never cuddled with anyone before (since that was _so_ important and _so_ intimate for these things), so that must've meant she'd never been with anyone romantically before. Mike had come along, stolen her…heart (or whatever) and then shattered it to pieces; the only guy she'd ever liked had broken her heart and couldn't love her back.

Damn. That was harsh, wasn't it?

Mike sighed a little, "…Y'know about Foxy, then?"

" _Everyone_ knows about Foxy. It's why we don't go in the cove - he's paranoid someone will steal his _precious little treasure!_ " Chica replied with as much sarcasm as she could muster.

Yeah, he wished they'd mentioned that before he'd gotten a faceful of hook. Mike raised a brow, looking at her out of the corner of his eye. "Do you… _like_ Foxy…?"

" _Ew!_ " Chica's head sprang up, looking at him like he'd grown two heads, "No _way!_ He's like…a _brother_ to me! Yuck! Mike Schmidt!" Mike put up his hands in surrender. He was _definitely_ the first guy she'd ever liked. Chica's face fell again, albeit slower this time. "It's just…I wish he didn't like her so much…They were… _really_ close when she was still around…"

"They were a thing?"

"Uh-huh. I was forced to watch."

"Ouch."

"Yup…"

"That must've sucked."

"Hm?" Chica looked at him confusedly, "Sucked what?"

Mike choked back a chuckle, then cleared his throat quickly before he could laugh. Too damn innocent. "Uh - nothing. Nevermind. I was just saying - must've been bad."

"It was…" Chica looked away again, "Bonnie liked Toy Bonnie a lot; they were _always_ together. Freddy and Toy Freddy barely ever talked cause Toy Freddy was scared of 'im and Freddy was always following Bonnie around. _Way_ too paranoid he'd break again." _Sounds like Freddy,_ Mike thought as he nodded, a sign that he was still listening. "I didn't see much of the other Foxy…I was always in the backroom. The others didn't pay any thought about me…" She sniffled.

Mike cringed at that and rubbed his head. God, the poor thing. He had no idea her self-esteem was really that low. The part of him that didn't regret yelling at her knew that he still would have if he had known what he did now, but the part of him that did…now really wished he had worded it differently. "Chica…I'm sorry that all happened to you. That…must've felt pretty bad. But, hey, I've been through some tough shit too and, y'know, it's hard, but…hell. I'm gonna sound like a total idiot here - it…does get better." _Oh, God, I sound like those bastards at my anger management…_ "And…if it makes ya feel any better…you're my favourite…"

There was a sudden pause in this moment, during which Chica seemed to freeze over entirely, like her servos had locked tight. Mike, for a moment, considered shaking her, but she suddenly raised her head, putting a stop to both that plan and - metaphorically - Mike's dead heart. "Y…You mean that, Mike Schmidt…?"

"Sure." Mike shrugged. "You're the only one that didn't make me piss myself, I'm sure. Bonnie creeped the fuck outta me and Foxy was my nightmare fuel. Freddy was…Freddy. Was _not_ ready for Freddy. _Golden_ Freddy was a son of a bitch. But you - you were…alright." Chica didn't respond, so Mike decided to reassure her, "Besides, I always said 'hi' to you, right?"

Alright, it was probably a bit cruel for him to say this to her. True, she was the one he found the least scary during his time on the night shift and, yes, she was the only one who hadn't left him sitting in a puddle of his own urine. But…he wouldn't have classified her as his 'favourite'. He didn't _have_ favourites - they had KILLED HIM. 'Least hated', yes, but not 'favourite'. And fuelling her idea that saying 'hi' to her all the time was a sign that he liked her probably wasn't the best idea, but to hell with it. If it sped up his apology, so be it. He'd deal with whatever consequences there were later.

Mike almost jumped out of his suit as Chica suddenly squeaked loudly, her own equivalent to a grin quickly forming on her face (which, to her, was her mouth opening widely…huh. So that was why that happened when she was outside his window. Go figure). "Mike _Schmidt!_ " She squealed loudly, then flung herself at him and hugged him tightly.

Mike immediately froze up. This wasn't like Bonnie's hug. Bonnie's hug was out of protection and he had considered it a bother, as it had interrupted his fight with Freddy. Chica's hug was out of love and he simply considered it…uncomfortable and awkward. Gently, he pushed Chica back, "Uh…"

"Thank you, Mike Schmidt!" She chirped, eyes practically sparkling. "D-Does this mean you love me back?"

 _Wait, what?!_ "Chica, we just had this fucking conversation! No!" Chica's face fell, so Mike quickly amended, "I mean - no, sorry, I don't. Still." He let go of her and shuffled back a little. If Chica was so easy to influence like that, he had to be careful with what he did around her. Sometimes, he could've sworn Chica had the most childish mind out of all of them. "I mean…we barely even know each other. Why the hell do you like me anyway? You know squat about me!"

"Well…" She twiddled her thumbs (an action which looked totally wrong on a killer animatronic, by the way) and suddenly looked shy, "…I know that you're handsome…and I like your voice…and your eyes are really pretty…"

 _Alright. You can stop that now._ "Well…I, uh…I'm flattered, Chica, but…I still don't think anything's gonna…happen with this. In fact, I know it won't." Chica's little smile fell. "But, hey, like I said: you're the one I think is…alright. Bonnie made me piss myself, Foxy was in my fucking nightmares, Freddy was being a total bastard and Golden Freddy just…is really fucking creepy."

Chica giggled, her hands covering her bill, and Mike raised a brow, "You talk _funny,_ Mike Schmidt!"

Mike's eyes narrowed now. Why the hell did they all say that to him? He was speaking _normal English_ and so were they, so why did they think he talked funny? "I don't talk funny. What d'you _mean_ by that?"

"You talk funny, Mike Schmidt! It's like 'Bonnie made me brrrraaaaabbbfff myself' and 'Foxy was in my brrrraaaaabbbfff nightmares' and 'Freddy was being a total brrrraaaaabbbfff' and Golden Freddy just…is really brrrraaaaabbbfff creepy'!" She burst into laughter, pointing at him and tilting her head to the ceiling. Her laughter echoed faintly in the room.

Mike stared in confusion. "The hell? I don't talk like -" He paused as she laughed harder and the realisation hit him. She hadn't said any of the swear words and instead replaced them with sounds that made no sense…because that was how she heard them. "They don't understand swearing." He muttered to himself, giving his forehead a slap because it was _so obvious._ "Of course they don't. They have the minds of _kids,_ they're not gonna know what swearing _is._ Doesn't process through their AIs or…whatever. Holy crap. Can't believe I didn't even notice…" He rested his head back against the oven as he waited for her to quieten down. It was times like this he really wished his father had been alive long enough to tell him how to speak to women or, in the very least, that he had taken up Phone Guy's offer of getting advice about how to handle a chicken animatronic who happened to be in love with you. Not that Phone Guy would know a whole lot about that, but whatever. Mike's eyes widened - _Phone Guy!_ "Oh, shit! What time is it?!" He frantically searched the kitchen for a clock, then gave up and whipped around to her, "Chica!"

"Hm?" Chica blinked and forcefully silenced herself, "Mike Schmidt?"

He leaned toward her slightly in his attempt at hurrying her up, "Are we okay now? You're not upset with me anymore? Cause, if you are, Freddy will kill me." _For a second time._

Chica blinked twice, then turned from him and played with her fingers, "Well…I was never upset with _you,_ Mike Schmidt…Can't _force you_ to love me, after all…That'd be wrong. And really rude too." Mike nodded several times. _Yeah, it would, now hurry the fuck up!_ "So…" She gave him another shy look. "Maybe…we can be friends?"

 _Doubtful._ "Uh…sure, Chica. That's fine." _It's really not._

Chica gave him a sweet smile and another hug. This time, he patted her twice on the back to hurry up the sign of affection, then the chicken suddenly pulled him to his feet. "C'mon, then! I think the people are gonna come in soon!"

"Right!" Mike said hurriedly, turning and making his way out (accidentally dragging Chica along the way, though she didn't seem to mind that). Mike finally let go of her when they reached the middle of the dining area. The dead man jumped when he caught sight of the two other animatronics sitting on one of the tables out of the corner of his eye.

Bonnie and Freddy had their backs to he and Chica, so neither had noticed them come in. Not that they could really notice much anyways, since Freddy's booming laughter echoed throughout the room and destroyed any other sound. It made Mike cringe, though Bonnie only stared at the bear in wonder and awe. "Y-You…laughed at one of my jokes…" The bunny muttered, his ears twitching.

Freddy looked to him with a smile, "Well, of course I did!" He put a hand on Bonnie's shoulder, "You're _funny_ , Bonnie!"

Bonnie looked down at Freddy's hand, then back to Freddy's face, his eyes still wide and his mouth in the shape of an 'o' (Mike didn't even think the animatronics could make that shape with their mouths). Suddenly (and this was enough to make _Freddy_ jump, so Mike had to give Bonnie props for this one), Bonnie jumped up and lunged at his partner, throwing his arms around him, "Oh, _Freddy!_ You're _back!_ "

Freddy chuckled whole-heartedly and returned Bonnie's hug, "What're you talking about? I never left!"

"You're not a grumpy grump anymore! My Freddy is back!"

 _Holy shit, that's weird…_ Mike thought, not only because Bonnie had called him _his_ Freddy, but because he could see Bonnie's foot had popped up. _You're the girl in this relationship, Bonnie. Hope you realise that._

"Yeah…" Freddy stood up from the table to hug Bonnie properly, "Sorry I've been such a jerk lately, Bonnie. I…just got stressed about some stuff…"

"Aw, Freddy!" Bonnie broke the hug and held Freddy's hands in his, "Is that all? Ya silly bear - ya shoulda said something! I coulda helped!"

Freddy blinked twice and Mike knew he was contemplating telling Bonnie about his secret. Then the bear simply smiled, "Yeah. Yeah, you could've. I'm sorry, Bonnie. I won't do that to you again - I swear by that. That's a Fazbear Promise for you right there."

"Oh, Freddy!" Bonnie cooed, then pressed his nose to Freddy's. Freddy's jolted lightly, then smiled and leaned into it. Mike guessed that was their version of a kiss. Or maybe they had kissing and this was equivalent to pressing foreheads. They had big heads, after all - couldn't exactly angle them to touch properly.

The dead man stared at the two with a deadpanned look, then suddenly shouted, "HEY!" Bonnie jumped at least a foot in the air, his ears shooting up as he screamed, and Freddy jolted where he stood. "Ha!" Mike laughed triumphantly, "Finally got one of you fuckers to scream! About time you did that!"

"M-Mike _Schmidt! Chica!_ " Bonnie exclaimed, turning away from them in embarrassment and putting his hands to his cheeks.

"Gosh!" Chica walked among the tables toward the stage, "You guys are so _lame!_ "

"Says you." Freddy grumbled, picking his hat up from where Bonnie had accidentally knocked it off. The bunny murmured an apology for that, but the bear shrugged it off as he brushed off the brim and placed the hat back on his head.

Foxy came sprinting into the room a second later, "Aye, me shipmates! The sun be up and the people be arrivin'! Time t' get back to yer places!"

Mike slipped something off of the nearest table, then made his way toward the backstage room before pausing and turning to Foxy, who was just stepping into Pirate Cove, "Hey! Foxy!"

"Hm?" The fox turned to him, one foot already in his home, "Aye, lad?"

"Fuck fuck fuckity fuck." Mike said simply.

"…Ye talk funny, lad."

"Ha! I know!" Mike waved a hand, "Sorry. You were, like, the only one who hadn't said it. Carry on." Foxy nodded slowly, not understanding the joke, then disappeared into Pirate Cove.

"Ha ha! You talk _funny,_ Mike Schmidt!" Bonnie called from the stage as he stood in position, guitar in his hands.

"I know, I know." Mike opened the door to the backstage area, then turned back to address another animatronic, "Hey! Fazbear!" Freddy looked over as he picked up his microphone from the floor. Mike raised two fingers to the eye holes of his suit, then turned them around to point at Freddy's. Freddy stared for a moment, then smiled in amusement and returned the gesture to Mike. The dead man snorted, then turned and made his way into the backstage area, shutting the door behind him. As soon as the door shut, he sighed, then -

"Hey, Mister."

"Oh, holy SHIT!" Mike jumped, looking down at the ghost children with wide eyes and one hand over his heart, "Fucking - Okay, everyone in this goddamn restaurant gets _bells!_ Then I won't have a freaking heart attack every time one of you enters a goddamn _room!_ "

The kids all stared up at him, then giggled together, "Gosh, Mister!" The Freddy girl exclaimed, "Papa Bear was right - you're _funny!_ "

Mike offered a little grin to her, then was distracted by the incessant pulling of his right thumb. The Chica boy looked up at him with pleading eyes, "Mister, Chica's not still sad, is she?"

Mike smiled, "Nah. She's fine now." The boy visibly relaxed, his shoulders falling from their tense state. "Hey, listen…kid. I, um, I'm sorry I bullied you earlier. That…really wasn't okay."

The kids all looked to the Chica boy to confirm this, looking most horrified, but the chubby boy just smiled, "It's okay, Mister. I'm just happy Chica's happy! I forgive ya!" He leaned forward and hugged Mike's leg. Mike rested a gentle hand on top of his head, then looked down at the other kids.

They were all so bright and fun, with all their little quirks and their different personalities. It was really no wonder why the animatronics loved these kids so much because, honestly, Mike felt himself getting pretty attached too. Phone Guy had warned him (jokingly, of course) that that would probably happen - these kids were so gosh-darned cute! In return, they all seemed to love Phone Guy and, he'd be darned, he could've sworn they were starting to love him too. It made him feel a little warm inside. These kids were lonely and unsure of what to do half the time, but knowing that he was one of the only people that they would trust made it seem a bit better. Until, of course, he remembered why and how they got here in the first place, and his smile dropped. "Kids," he started with a tone serious enough to get their full attention, "…I am _so sorry_ for what he did to you…"

The kids all froze, letting out little gasps of their own. They looked to each other worriedly, as they had long since formed a silent agreement to never speak of that incident, and checked each other for any tears. As always, they remained in their eyes, but didn't fall. After they were all sure no one was too upset, the Freddy girl looked up at Mike, "Aw…it's okay, Mister." Ever the optimistic, she added, "It's not so bad, anyways. At least we get to see Papa Bear and the others more often! So long as the Purple Men don't see us, we're fine!"

 _Oh, God. They call us Purple Men…I was a Purple Man to them._ "Well…you don't have to worry about that." Mike's lips lifted up and revealed his teeth to make a grin as he gestured to himself - his _very human_ self - with one thumb, "Your Big Brother Mike's here to protect you!"

The four children gasped happily and the three that weren't already clinging to Mike's legs did just that. Mike bent down to hug them back the best he could, smiling widely to himself. Finally, he felt like he could protect someone. He hadn't entirely felt that with his mother, since he knew anything could've happened to her either while he was working or while he slept and he knew no amount of money could save the rest of her mind from being scattered. He simply did the best he could, however, as her son and only family left in the world. With these children, however, he'd keep them safe from all that could hurt them. That wasn't much, considering they were spirits, but it was the thought that counted.

The Chica boy raised his head, "So, are you gonna marry Chica, Mister?!"

"What - No." Mike spluttered out.

"Of course he's not!" The Foxy girl exclaimed, her hands going to her hips, "He likes Hello!"

"What the - I'm not _gay_ \- _what?!_ "Mike exclaimed next, looking absolutely flabbergasted and feeling his cheeks burn.

"Nuh-uh!" The Freddy girl stepped back and took up the same position as her new argument partner, "Schmidtty likes Chica!"

"The _hell_ did you just call me?" Mike muttered.

"No! He likes Hello! They hug a whole lot - that's how I know!"

"Holy shit, you saw that?"

"Him and Chica hug a lot too!"

" _Well…_ "

"No, they don't!"

"Yuh-huh!"

"Nuh-uh!"

"Kids, kids!" Mike waved his hands, unable to take much more of this. The girls looked up at him. "I-I don't like either of them like that! Really!"

The girls stared at him, giving him the critical eye, then said in unison, "You're lying, Schmidtty."

"What?! No, I'm not! And would you stop -"

"Yeah, I swear to God that door shut just now."

Mike froze as he heard the voice outside. His body couldn't move for a moment as he listened, then he mentally swore. The manager and the janitor had arrived.

"What? Come on! Look: Freddy and his pals are up on stage! And look," Mike heard the distant sound of a curtain being opened, as well as a grown man gasping in fright, "Foxy's stashed back in here!" The curtain was closed and the manager continued, "For God's sake, man, it was just the wind!"

"Nothing's ever the wind around here, man. What if it was…the yellow one?"

"Oh, for fuck's sake - seriously?! He doesn't open and close _doors,_ stupid!"

"How do you know? He could!"

"He _doesn't._ I know."

 _Holy shit. The fucker even knew about Golden Freddy. Son of a bitch._ Mike turned to address the children, only to find them gone. He blinked and looked around for them, but they were no where to be found. The manager's voice - as hoarse and gruff as it was - must've scared them off. Mike cursed mentally.

"Alright, look, you freaking coward, I'll _show you!_ "

Mike's panic levels increased dramatically as he heard footsteps coming his way. _Shit, shit, shit, shit!_ He ran around the table to the sealed doorway to the Freddy Room and pulled the slab of wall off, then slipped in and pushed it back into place, just as the door to the backstage area opened. "See?!" He heard the manager exclaim, "Nothing in here! Unless Schmidt's come back from the dead or something, nobody's been in here!"

 _You son of a bitch, you think that's funny?_ Mike scowled as the door shut. He listened out for any more sounds that would alert him to his ex-boss's location, but silence met him. That is, until -

"Hello, hello!"

"OH, SHIT!" Mike shouted, then he whipped around to where Phone Guy sat, "Do you all WANT to kill me for a second time?! Warn a guy when you're gonna say something, jackass!" It took literally two seconds for him to process that he had just called his idol a jackass and he went to apologise profusely, but Phone Guy's hearty laughter beat him to it.

"Ah, Mike. You're funny! Really brightening up my time in here, you know."

Mike smiled and walked toward him, "Yeah, you too…" He took his place beside Phone Guy, resting his back against the wall. He sighed as he finally relaxed. Honestly, there hadn't seemed to be a moment in this place so far where he could stay calm. He was going to take full advantage of this one.

"So, spill the beans, Junior. Did you manage to apologise to Chica?"

"Mm-hm."

"And? Is she happy now?"

"Yup."

"Well, that's good. Sad animatronics -"

"Bad for business. I know." Mike finished off tiredly. Ghosts couldn't sleep, but that didn't mean they couldn't get fed up.

Phone Guy's smile (and Mike was sure he had one beneath that Freddy head) most likely dropped at that, "Hey…Mike, you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just…" He sighed, "…just feels like all of this was for no reason, you know? Alright, I apologised to Chica and I understand Freddy's motives for killing all of us, but what now? I can't come back to life - my body's all mangled up in here. What was the point?"

"Maybe it's just to settle you into your afterlife?" Phone Guy offered up. "Technically, we kinda _are_ still alive - in a way. Complicated. But, just remember, Mike, it's the Puppet's fault we're all like this. There isn't really much to do with something that wasn't our faults. Besides," he placed a hand on Mike's shoulder; gentle and comforting, as it always was. It made Mike look at him, "I think you're paying too much attention to the big picture and not enough to the little ones. Alright, we're dead and there's nothing we can do about that. No cure for that. But now we can take care of the kids _and_ we can make sure Freddy doesn't hurt anymore night guards (if we can). Honestly, I'd say we're doing pretty well for ourselves. Wouldn't you, Mike?"

Mike stared at him for a few seconds, then let out a chuckle and shook his head, "Jesus - how the hell do you know what to say all the time?"

"Oh, not all the time." Phone Guy released Mike's shoulder to wave his hand, "I didn't know what to say when my daughter asked where babies come from." Mike burst into laughter at that, shaking his head more fondly now. "Yeah…her mother had to handle that one…" He rubbed the back of his head.

Mike wiped his eye with a finger as his laughter died down, then he finally realised he was holding something. "Oh! Hey, Phone Guy, look," he held up the slip in his hand. He'd left it on the dining area table earlier when he went to apologise to Chica and now he'd finally remembered to share it with Phone Guy, "this is my mom, see."

Phone Guy leaned closer to look at the photo in Mike's hand, "Hm…she looks nice, Mike. Very motherly. You have her eyes. And her nose."

"Heh. I know."

"Oh, and look at that! She's wearing a Freddy pin! That's great. I still have mine too!"

Mike chuckled and placed the photo down between them. It still made his chest ache, knowing he would never see his mother again, but having that photo made it more bearable. He rested back against the wall, "…So…we just gonna sit here for the rest of our days?"

"That's the plan!" Phone Guy chirped. Mike chuckled, "Hey, don't worry, Mike. I'll, uh, keep you entertained if you keep me entertained."

"That another deal?"

"Can be if you want."

"…Alright." He offered his hand to Phone Guy, who took it and shook it almost immediately.

Both men sighed through their noses and basked in the short silence, as Phone Guy was quick to interrupt it. "…Hey. I've been meaning to ask."

"Hm?"

"What's this doing here?" He pointed to the object by their feet.

Mike raised his head to look at it, then frowned, "Aw, shit," he muttered, glaring at the fan as though this was its fault, "I meant to take that back…"

"Why do you have it anyway?"

"Made me feel safe." He answered truthfully, though without thinking, and flinched when Phone Guy laughed. He rubbed the back of his head and looked away in embarrassment. "I'll…take it back after those idiots have gone."

Phone Guy's laughter died down to a chuckle. He looked Mike up and down, noted his discomfort, then reached across and gently set a hand on top of Mike's. "It's alright, Mike. I'm not judging you - I'd have probably done the same, if I had thought of it. We're all human here, you know." _Some more than others,_ Mike thought as he cast a glance to the tiny box in Mark's lap. Nevertheless, he smiled, making Phone Guy smile gently, "For what it's worth, though, I'm pretty glad you're here. It's, uh, it's gonna be a good eternity - you and I."

Mike snorted in amusement. "God, that was fucking corny." He raised his head slightly, "Did you practise -" He froze. The hand on top of his was very much human and definitely not the hand of one Freddy Fazbear. The younger male stared at it before the knowledge that this was his chance to really see his hero came to mind. Mike's eyes followed Phone Guy's arm up and, finally, rested on his face.

Phone Guy was a young-looking man with a rounded face and creamy skin. His blond hair was cut short, reaching only the very top of his neck, and would've seemed a little bit messier if it had not been for the security guard hat on his head, which flattened his hair down enough to make it stay put. His lips were currently formed in a smile as he stared back at Mike with bright green eyes that seemed completely untainted, even with the situation he was in and the things he'd seen and were aware of in the world. They were as young as ever; it made Phone Guy look all the more friendly. Only the eyelids that half-covered his eyes displayed his age. In front of those were a pair of rimless glasses, which somehow added to this innocent look about him. Like Mike, he was still dressed in his uniform, though his was neater; the tie done up properly and all the buttons in place and the sleeves rolled down to his wrists and the shoes nice and shiny. It put Mike's uniform to shame. There was a nametag clipped to his right breast pocket, but it was tilted at an angle, so Mike couldn't see the name scrawled there (it didn't matter - he'd always be Phone Guy to him). He was taller than Mike too, by the look of him. Skinny as well. This man needed to eat a burger. Or two. Or three.

Mike had barely noticed he was staring as he took in every detail; Phone Guy surprised him by speaking, "Well, Mike? Do I live up to expectations?"

"I…" Mike struggled to speak for a moment. It was weird seeing Phone Guy's face at the same time as hearing his voice, but Mike found he liked it. He smiled, "A little, actually."

Phone Guy's smile brightened, "Well, that's good. I'd hate for you to be disappointed with me!" He grinned, displaying perfectly strong teeth.

"To be honest, Phone Guy, I'm just happy you're here with me."

Phone Guy faltered, then his grin widened, "Same here, Mike." He didn't remove his hand from Mike's; simply slapped his own thigh with his other hand, "Well! We should try passing the time, huh? How about I tell you about the old location, hm, Junior?"

"Seriously?" Mike asked. Phone Guy gave a nod, "Well - yeah! That'd be great. Go right ahead, Phone Guy."

"Alright, Mike. But I warn you," Phone Guy's bright grin never fell, "you won't _believe_ some of the things that happened _there…_ "

…

 **Author's note:**

 **Oh, wow. We at the end already? Time sure does fly, huh? No, not really.**

 **Anyways, I just wanted to say a big thanks to everybody who favourited, alerted, reviewed and…well, just everybody who** _ **read**_ **this! I was really hesitant to write Five Nights at Freddy's fan fiction for a while, so you guys have really boosted my confidence in this! Thank you very much! You guys rock!**

 **So, now that it's over, I can bore you with a long-winded author's note. But, first, a couple of review responses, since you guys aren't logged in and I feel like I owe you:**

 **Nightmare Taco: what Chica's been doing was pretty much explained at the start of this chapter: she was moping. As for Foxy, he was going about his business. Doesn't really do much. Talking to Toy Chica, probably. Honestly, Foxy wasn't as much of an importance as he was…'the other animatronic'. Sorry, Foxy.**

 **Dream Burrito: Oh, no, Phone Guy really is that nice. It's not an act at all. He's just a saint.**

 **Uh - anyway. Back down to business:**

 **The entire story is inspired by Five Nights at Freddy's fan songs 'An Animatronic Love Song' by EileMonty and 'Stay Calm' by Griffinilla (the voices of the animatronics in that song inspired the ones in this fic). The story itself is named after 'Awake and Alive' by Skillet.**

 **To anyone who actually wanted Mike and Chica to end up together - sorry, but I was never gonna go down that route. I don't ship humans and animatronics. Even if the animatronics are humanised, I don't go there. Besides, Mike won't and can't fall for any of them because they killed him and he'll never forgive them for that. The best Mike does with any of them is be civil toward them. If Mike and Chica were gonna end up together, I would've marked it as a pairing. So…yeah, sorry. It was forever going to be one-sided.**

 **Speaking of pairings, I'm glad you enjoyed the Freddy/Bonnie! The entire purpose of putting Freddy/Bonnie in was to show Mike that the robots** _ **could**_ **love. Chica would've looked pretty delusional if she was the only one saying she loved someone, so I shoved my second favourite ship in here to even things out a bit and give her an example to work with. Somewhere during the planning stages, my third favourite snuck in there and I rolled with it cause Foxy deserved a wee bit of attention (although, originally, that was going to happen** _ **after**_ **Mike confronted Freddy, rather than before, cause that incident with Foxy was gonna happen while Mike was looking for Chica, not Freddy. Originally, he just sorta ran into Freddy).**

 **Phone Guy's entire purpose in this story was to be emotional support for Mike. Let's be honest, I put Mike through a lot of crap during this, so he deserved to be happy at least once. Plus, it would've been a bit weird if Mike had possessed a suit and none of the other night guards had, so I just** _ **had**_ **to put Phone Guy in there. Phone Guy is pretty much my favourite FNAF character overall as well. Wouldn't be the same without him. His relationship with Mike was originally supposed to be a father-son one, but somewhere along the way, it morphed into a close bromance. I'll readily admit that Phone Guy/Mike** _ **is**_ **something I ship. In fact, I'll even confess it's my OTP for this fandom (and, right now, overall). But, rest assured, in this AU, Mike and Phone Guy are just close friends who like to hug a lot.**

 **As for the other night guards - yes, that was Markiplier (Mark), Tiny Box Tim, jacksepticeye (Jack), lordminion777 (Wade), muyskerm (Bob), MandoPony (Andrew) and…myself as the other Freddies. Honestly, I could not have had this story without Markiplier. Like Phone Guy is to Mike, Mark is my idol and my hero, who has saved me on several occasions. He got me over my phobia of FNAF (yes, it was a legit phobia. If you showed me pictures of the robots, I would've slowly begun to cry and I would NOT enter a room before turning on the lights and checking around the corners) and the horror genre altogether (I was a coward, what can I say). I mean, FNAF used to be my nightmare fuel (considering my fears of animatronics, the dark and loud noises), but watching Mark's playthrough got me over that and he made me laugh. Now, I'm one of Five Nights at Freddy's biggest fans, who has played all three games and is eagerly awaiting the fourth! So, hey, a little tribute to Mark in there…even though I killed him. Uh - sorry, Mark. It was…necessary…I also drove you insane…huh…Hey! You got Tiny Box Tim! That's…nice…hehe.**

 **Originally, Scott Cawthon was gonna be one of the Freddies, but I figured, y'know, Phone Guy pretty much** _ **is**_ **Scott, so…yeah. Putting two of them would be unfair to everyone else. Plus, Mike would be wondering why they sound the same.**

 **For anyone who liked this story, I'm pleased to tell you it's part of a trilogy! The prequel will be set during FNAF 2 and will focus on Foxy and Bonnie (since this one had Chica and Freddy driving the plot along) and the night guards will barely appear. I think you'll like Bonnie and Toy Bonnie's relationship (God knows I do…). The sequel to this takes place during FNAF 3 and will focus on Phone Guy, Mike and Purple Guy. I'm aiming to write the prequel first, since that'll be going in game order, and I don't know how long that'll take. It's still in its planning stage; they both are.**

 **I also have other FNAF stories all in motion, including one where the animatronics are humanised (I'm a sucker for humanisations. All pairings from here will also be in this fic. There is an** _ **abundance**_ **of Freddy/Bonnie, for anyone who digs that. It will contain a few more that didn't appear in this one and Golden Freddy will be more focused on than here) and another where Phone Guy/Mike is bound to happen (if anyone ships that, though it's still on the fence on whether they'll be romantically involved or not. It leans towards romantic, though), as well as little one-shots and drabbles here and there. Not done writing for these characters yet!**

 **So! Long-winded author's note over, so I'll finish this by saying, again, thank you again so much for reading! It really boosted my confidence (I've had a hard time writing lately) and I've been really happy to write for so many awesome people! Kinda shocked me how fast this thing got hits and reviews, so, again, BIG THANK YOU for that!**

 **Alrighty, then. Awake and Alive is over and I've got other FNAF fics to plan and write, so…be sure to see you then! Bye-bye!**


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